The Houses Competition Stories
by kuroaiko2014
Summary: Has a multitude of drabble, short, and themed stories for The Houses Competition. I'm writing 3 stories per round, so I figured a compilation would be best. Comment on chapters you think would be good as a multi-chaptered story. ] ** still not the owner of Harry Potter, but I am trying ;) **
1. Round One Drabble: Lessons in Combat

**A/N**

 **The Houses Competition**

 **Round one**

 **House: Hufflepuff**

 **Student: Year 7**

 **Category: Drabble (500 Words)**  
 **Prompt(s): 2. [Speech] "Family, first and forever."**  
 **Word count: (Per Google Docs) 269**  
 **Beta(s): Aya & Justaninnocenthufflepuff**

 **(Slightly OOC.)**

Lessons in Combat

Hermione was beginning to think she made the wrong career choice. "Jump, Harry!"

Harry leaped with no doubts that Hermione would cover his back. "Down, Hermione!"

The two executed several other moves before returning to their standard back-to-back formation.

Harry and Hermione were fighting with all they had, spellfire tearing everything apart around them as one would raise a shield while the other retaliated with their own volley of spells.

"And...TIME!" The proctor for the Auror Corps test-out came over and clapped each of them on the shoulder.

Hermione wiped her forehead and grimaced at the sweat that drenched her sleeve.

"How did we do?" Harry queried as he stretched out his left arm.

"I think you earned full marks, but we'll have to review by pensieve first to make sure that you avoided all 'deadly' spells," the proctor replied.

Harry shrugged and dropped his arm down to check over Hermione. "Did you get hit?"

Hermione shook her head and grumbled, "I could have gotten that last 'Crucio' without your interference. You didn't have to pull me away."

"Hermione," Harry chided, "Family, first and forever. Remember? I wouldn't let you get hit with any variation of the Unforgivables, even in training simulations. You're my sister from another mister." Harry grinned.

Hermione punched his sore casting arm and smirked back. "As you say, my brother from another mother."

"Granger. Potter. Come over and see what you did wrong, and tell me what you will do to improve your next simulation!"

"Moving, Commander!" The duo saluted, then jogged over to their proctor. It was going to be an interesting day.


	2. Round One Short: Finding the Truth

**A/N**

 **The Houses Competition**

 **Round one**

 **House: Hufflepuff**

 **Student: Year 7**

 **Category: Short 500-2000 words  
Prompt: 8. [Emotion] Anger  
Word Count: 1011 per Google Docs**

 **Finding the Truth**

Anger was too weak a word to identify this feeling in his chest. An all-encompassing, unadulterated, burning rage was a better phrase. His fury at the fact he had once again been left to rot as if his life didn't matter except to be ridiculed by the press and attacked by his fellow students knew no bounds. Not only had the papers painted him as a lunatic with a flair for dramatics, they also claimed that Harry had killed Cedric himself! Why would he kill a classmate? Let alone the only classmate that had believed him from the start when he said he did not enter himself into that stupidly dangerous tournament? Who in their right mind would want to compete in it anyways? There was a thirty-six percent mortality rate!

Harry snarled as he went through the motions of packing his belongings. He would not spend another moment in this house. He had never considered this cookie cutter house to be a home anyways.

That isn't even to mention the Dementors that had tried to kill him and Dudley the day before. He had received the notice from the Ministry seconds after arriving home, followed immediately by a letter from Dumbledore and another notice from the Ministry.

That had been the last straw for the Dursleys. They had finally done it. That fat man who called himself his Uncle had tried to lay his hands on him. Harry's wandless magic had thrown the man through his door and down the hall. Harry spared a moment to be even more angry at the fact that he had not been able to toss him down the stairs as well.

Lovely Aunt Petunia had shrieked at him for being a freak and hurting her dear, sweet Vernon before Harry took her voice away...permanently. Accidental Transfiguration is such a hard thing to reverse if not done within a certain time frame… especially on muggles.

Dudley had wisely not come home that night. Harry sneered at the thought. Dudley. What he wouldn't give to be able to visit every bruise, split lip, and broken bone he had ever been dealt by the boy on him at once. Harry idly wondered if the fat teen would survive all the injuries he had doled out at once. "Probably not," he muttered mutinously.

Harry hissed as his scar started to burn. "Not now, Voldemort. I have bigger fish to fry right now than you."

Harry blinked in shock when the pain receded. "Huh. I thought that would be more difficult."

He blinked and suddenly found himself elsewhere. "What the hell?"

"You don't have time for me, Potter? Bigger fish to fry?" Voldemort coalesced out of thin air. "What bigger fish is there than myself, I wonder?"

"You seriously pulled me into your mind over a turn of phrase?" Harry growled in indignation.

Voldemort merely sneered at the teen without giving a response.

"I'm sure you can look through my eyes and see what I'm dealing with. You should be able to anyways, considering I can look through yours," Harry snapped, tired of the silent treatment. "I can feel your annoyance, you know," he added bitterly. "Any time you feel an intense emotion, I know."

Voldemort tilted his head thoughtfully and moved closer to the teen as he examined him. "So that's it. I wondered…" Voldemort reached out a hand.

Harry flinched back, "Don't touch me!"

Voldemort rolled his eyes, "I'm going to take away the pain that comes with my presence, Potter."

Harry sneered at the taller man. "I doubt it."

Voldemort narrowed his gaze and suddenly Harry couldn't move at all. "I will only do what I have said, Po-Harry. I'm not one to lie when telling the truth is so much easier."

Harry still clenched his eyes shut as Voldemort stepped closer. His teeth clenched as the pads of Voldemort's fingers touched his curse scar. The pain he felt was even greater than the Cruciatus Curse Voldemort had flung at him in the graveyard. Voldemort muttered under his breath and suddenly Harry sagged, pain-free. He nearly collapsed, but Voldemort caught him before he hit the floor.

"Wh-what?" Harry mumbled as he tried to open his eyes.

"Relax, Harry. I am not going to hurt you." Voldemort cradled the teen to his chest and frowned at the slight form.

"H-how? How did you- how did you take away the- the pain?" Harry's eyes were glazed as he looked up at the much older man.

"I didn't realize what was going on. Otherwise, I would not have tried so fervently to kill you," Voldemort responded without actually answering the questions.

Harry's eyes closed and he fell asleep.

"That was not supposed to happen," Voldemort murmured. He clung to the mind form of his Horcrux and followed the path back to its source. He apparated directly into the smallest bedroom of 4 Privet Drive and looked around. He had felt no wards impeding his advance and frowned. Didn't Lucius tell him that Dumbledore boasted there were wards specifically geared to keep him, and his followers, out of the boy's home? Voldemort looked around the room with a sneer before he stepped forward to lift the fallen teen into his arms in the real world.

Voldemort placed the teen on the rickety bed and called his House Elf to pack everything into the trunk. He released the owl from its cage and the Elf used shrinking charms to get everything to fit. "I'm taking him away from here," Voldemort said softly. "Can you find him once we've arrived at our destination?"

Hedwig eyed to man before she bobbed her head and took off out the window. "Take his things to the guest room in my wing, Mindy."

"Yes, Master," the Elf responded primly. She snapped her fingers and the Elf and the boy's belongings vanished silently.

Voldemort gently picked up the teen again, then silently apparated away.

Hundreds of miles away, a dozen silver instruments shattered in the office of the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.


	3. Round One Themed: Taking His Place

**The Houses Competition**

 **Round one**

 **House: Hufflepuff**

 **Student: Year 7**

 **Category: Themed (2000-5000 words)  
** **Theme: Friendship-A true friend stands by through the best and the worst.  
** **Prompt(s): 2. [Speech] "Well, I had this plan…"  
** **Word Count: 2355 per Google Docs**

 **Notes:** ' **Bold** ' = parseltongue

 **Taking His Place**

Tom frowned and tried to get Abraxas Malfoy to listen to him. It wasn't every day that one tried to get an alliance of friendship from a Noble House, after all. Not that the Malfoy heir knew that Tom was actually the heir of an Ancient House and therefore higher on the chain than he was.

"Malfoy, may I have a word?" Tom asked when Malfoy was on his own for once.

"What do you want, Riddle? I have things to do," drawled Abraxas.

"I need to speak with you." Tom glanced around to open corridor, "Someplace private. It is important."

Malfoy glared at the shorter teen. "I do not have time today."

"Tomorrow then. I really do need to speak with you," Tom insisted.

"Fine," Malfoy snapped, then turned and strode away.

"This is going to be difficult, and annoying," Tom groaned.

- **two days later** -

"Riddle," a cultured voice purred. "Riddle, it is time to wake up. You are going to be late." Mercurial eyes narrowed at the sleeping teen. "Tom Riddle, wake up now."

Dark chocolate eyes blinked open lazily before they sharpened into focus. "You will back off, Abraxas, if you want to be able to continue the Malfoy line."

"I was just making sure that you were going to actually get up on time, Riddle," the Malfoy heir retorted, backing away from the future Dark Lord slowly.

"Just go away," Tom growled and sat up, running his hands through his hair to straighten the unruly strands. "I'll meet you and the others at the Great Hall for breakfast in twenty minutes."

"As you wish." Abraxas snapped his fingers, and the others in the dorm stood to follow him silently. As soon as they were out of the dorm room, they all started talking at once.

"Brax, what the hell is going on with you and that nasty little mudblood?" Theodore Nott growled.

"Yeah, why are you taking orders from _him_?" Orion Black hissed. "He's not worthy to step foot in our Common Room, and you are following his orders like a little yappy dog after a treat."

Abraxas arched a delicate eyebrow at the vitriol spewed by his dorm mates. "Just wait and see. All will be revealed tonight."

Orion scoffed, "I doubt it. Nothing would make me heel to that upstart mudblood like you are doing."

"And people wonder how we are friends," Abraxas sighed. "You should watch yourself, Orion. We may be friends, but I will _not_ put up with caustic remarks that try to damage my reputation." He rolled his shoulders back and stood just a bit taller. "Trust me, you will be in for a night of revelations. Don't let him come between us and out twelve years of actual friendship, Orion."

Orion scowled and remained silent.

Theo shrugged. "I guess I can reserve judgment for this 'revelation' you are promising. It had better be all that you think it is and more if you want to maintain any sort of friendship with my House after standing up for the mudblood."

Abraxas clenched his jaw and nodded sharply. "It will be. I would not stake the Malfoy Family reputation on anything that had even the most remote chance of failing."

- **the night before** -

"Malfoy," Riddle called out as the Malfoy heir tried to walk past him without acknowledging him.

Abraxas halted and glanced at the smaller boy. He sneered his response. "Yes, Riddle?"

"Come join me for a moment. I think I can show you something that will make your night."

Malfoy sniffed, "I do not have time for your little games, Riddle. I need to get to the library before it closes for a reference book."

Tom smirked at the taller boy before he turned his back on him and walked off toward one of the abandoned classrooms past the Potions classroom. "Well, if you aren't brave enough to be alone with me, I guess I will have to show someone else...Though you did say you would speak to me today when we spoke yesterday. Seems to me a Malfoy's words mean nothing if you can not keep a promise that easy," he called over his shoulder tauntingly.

Abraxas gritted his teeth and stalked after Riddle with a flare of his robes. "I am scared of _nothing_ , much less an upstart little mudblood such as yourself," Abraxas snarled under his breath as he slammed his way into the classroom behind Riddle. "A Malfoy is as good as his wo-" He stopped short with a strangled gasp.

Tom Riddle walked toward the frozen Malfoy heir, a six foot long, deadly runespoor wrapped around his torso and shoulders. The three heads were posed hissing at head height on the slightly younger wizard. The runespoor's left and right heads were on each side of Riddle's head hissing violently, while the center head posed above, mouth opened threateningly, revealing venom coated fangs. Tom hissed out in parseltongue, ' **Really, Abraxasss? Are you ssssure?** '

Abraxas stumbled back and hit the wall before he slid down to kneel on the floor. "A _parselmouth_ ," he whispered reverently.

Tom sneered at the kneeling Malfoy, ' **Are you sssssscared, Malfoy?** ' The sibilant hisses caused a shudder to wrack through Abraxas.

Abraxas remained kneeling on the floor and refused to look up at the imposing figure that was a runespoor wrapped Tom Riddle. "You are a _parselmouth_. How is this possible? Only Slytherin's Heir should have this ability!"

Tom leaned against a desk and shrugged. He made the conscious effort to speak in English. "I am not a _mudblood_ as you and your idiotic cohorts keep assuming. I am the Heir of Slytherin. A Founder's Heir of Hogwarts." He reached up and stroked the left head on the runespoor thoughtfully. He then switched back to parseltongue with a dark laugh, ' **I wanted to ssshow you thisss asss a ssign of friendssship. Thissss makesss my plansss much easssier to execute.** '

Abraxas shuddered again and clenched his fists. The serpent speech was having a nearly paralyzing effect on him. He was too terrified to stand. Who knew what the apparent Slytherin Heir would do to him after all the hexes, jinxes, and curses the others of his House had sent at Riddle when his guard was down. Not that he had participated very often in the hexing, but it was still frequent enough to give Abraxas doubts as to whether he was safe in the dorm any longer.

Riddle apparently grew bored with Abraxas cowering at his feet. "Ssssstand up, Abraxasss. I need alliesss. Friendsss," he whispered softly. The drawled hissing notes in his sentence sent a thrill of terror down the Malfoy's back.

Abraxas stood shakily and tried to summon back his pureblood mask of indifference. "Wh...what do you want me to do?"

Riddle grinned, an evil glint in his eye. "Well, I had this plan…"

- **back to the present** -

Tom Riddle strode through the doors into the Great Hall. He stalked over to the Slytherin table and sat with grace after glaring at everyone within a ten-foot radius. "Did you speak with the others, Malfoy?" Tom queried, making sure to keep from hissing his words.

Malfoy nodded succinctly. "All Fourth Years and above will be in the Common room after the Third Years and under will return to their dorms for curfew at nine."

Riddle smirked. "Very well." He ate his breakfast and ignored all other conversation around him.

After he finished eating, he stood and glanced at his classmates. "I'm going to speak with the Charms Professor before class starts." He turned and left without waiting for acknowledgment.

- **that evening** -

After classes were over for the day Tom prepared for his reveal. It wouldn't do to have the others try to lynch him after he survived four years in the snake den. He decided to take his dinner in the kitchens to give the Slytherins a little extra time to get the younger years upstairs and behind the wards. It wouldn't do for Medusa to bite a screaming child.

At ten minutes before nine, Tom made his way back to the Common Room. He had stopped at his favorite abandoned classroom to pick up his three-headed runespoor, Medusa. He hissed the parseltongue override password to the Slytherin dorm and entered the room with a feral grin at exactly nine p.m.

The Fourth through Seventh Year students looked up and nearly the entire room flinched back at the sight of the giant runespoor encircling the teen.

"What the hell do you think you are doing, Riddle?" Orion Black yelped as he saw the snake.

' **Well, this ssseemss ssssimple enough, doesss it not, Medusssssa?** ' Tom hissed to the serpent as it rested its middle head on top of his hair. The other two heads rested on his shoulders and glared as the cowering students.

' **Thisss room reekssssss of fear, Massster,** ' the left head spoke.

Tom patted the left head and grinned, ' **They think I am sssome filthy mudblood. Not the Heir of the Great Sssslytherin.** '

Malfoy stumbled forward as he was pushed by Orion. "Riddle?" Malfoy glared over his shoulder at his supposed best friend. "The others are…" He suddenly laughed. "The others elected me to be the spokesperson because they are too _afraid_ ," he spat, "to speak for themselves.

Tom arched an eyebrow and glanced at the masses. "Reeeeally. Weak. The lot of you. Too scared to actually step forward and call me a mudblood to my face. Content to hide behind those with more money, or better blood." He glared at the gathered students. "I _am_ the better blood. I AM THE HEIR OF SLYTHERIN!"

At Tom's shout, the runespoor reared back, their mouths opened, fangs glistened with venom and hissing vitriolic comments about the scared sheep that recoiled in fear.

Tom hissed out in enraged parseltongue, ' **Ssspeak to me Ssslytherin. Greatesst of the Hogwartsss Four!** ' At his command, all the snake motifs in the Common Room surged to full life. Paintings hissed insults at the cringing students, tables came apart as the snake carved legs separated and came to coil around the heir, wall sconces hurled fires as the snakes spit the flames from their mouths. "Cowards. You all should have been Hufflepuffs," he sneered in scorn. He started to turn to head up to his dorm room.

"Riddle," Malfoy called, still standing apart from the others where he had been pushed. "I am not afraid."

Tom stopped before he reached the stairs. "Oh? Is that so?" He abruptly stalked towards the Malfoy heir and gave him a once over. "If you are not afraid, why is your heart beating so fast? Why are you perspiring? Why are your hands trembling, Malfoy?"

Malfoy swallowed thickly, "Power is…" He took a shuddering breath, "Power is intoxicating, and your power- it just rolls off of you in waves." Malfoy swayed towards the smaller teen. "Obviously, I want to be a part of that."

"As allies?" Tom asked, glaring at the still terrified Slytherins.

"I was hoping we could be friends," Malfoy responded. "I do, however, realize that it takes more than one plot and hostile takeover to become best friends, so I am willing to compromise until we come to a full agreement."

Tom eyed the older teen with interest as Medusa hissed her approval of the only person brave enough (even if he had originally been pushed into it...literally) to stand up to him. "Allies, then." He stuck out his hand with an arched brow to see if the pureblood would risk touching him now that he was confirmed as a parselmouth in front of the entirety of the Slytherin upperclassmen.

Lucius grabbed his wrist in a handshake, watching the large serpent wrapped around his body in interest. "Allies, with the distinct possibility of becoming more."

Tom shrugged. "If you say so." He turned to the other students. "Anyone else brave enough to actually face me?" His eyes narrowed as he found Orion. "How about you, Black? Care to touch a mudblood?"

Orion recoiled as if struck. He tried to square his shoulders. "A mudblood cannot be a parselmouth. Only those of Slytherin's great line have the gift."

"And yet, here we are. Debating my blood status. Even with proof in front of your face, you mock and defy me." Tom turned to Abraxas, "Does this quivering idiot of the House of Black deserve my friendship, Abraxas?"

Abraxas glanced at his best friend's white face, "If he learns to control his temper, he would be a great asset to you, Riddle."

"But friendship is not on the table for this one?" Tom asked again.

"Not at this time, no," Abraxas conceded. "However, Walburga Black is a good ally and friend to have," he added, waving the girl forward.

Walburga moved with grace and knelt before Tom. "I would pledge myself to the great Heir of Slytherin as ally and friend," Walburga stated in a clear voice.

"Walburga!" Orion sputtered, "What is the meaning of this?!"

"The meaning, dear Orion, is explicit in the words. You would be a fool to not take the chance to join the Ancient Line of Slytherin as allies or more. I am not a fool."

"Rise, Walburga Black," Tom said softly, "Friend and Ally to the Ancient House of Slytherin."

Malfoy grimly smiled. "It's time to put the rest of the plan in action, My Lord," Abraxas stated as he knelt at Riddle's feet.

"Ah, yes," Tom agreed. "Who else will pledge their fealty to the Heir of Slytherin?"

Over half of the remaining students knelt on the floor with bowed heads. The remaining students backed up and lined the walls, all Fourth Years that needed to speak with their parents before making a move.

"Leave, Fourth Years. I will speak with you all after you've spoken with your families. Let them know that the Heir of Slytherin has come to light."

The Fourth Years scrambled up to the dormitories with no further urging. Tom was the only student left standing.

"Rise, my Knights of Walpurgis. It is time to cleanse the Wizarding World. This is the plan..."


	4. Round Two Drabble: Singing at the Office

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round two  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Drabble (500 Words)  
Prompt(s): 10. [Speech] "No, but really, what is an mmmbop?"**  
 **Word count: (Per Google Docs) 336  
** **Beta(s): Angel, Aya, Zoe**

 **Singing at the Office**

Assured footsteps stuttered to a halt as the voice of one Hermione Granger floated out of an open office door a few feet down a hall off the main corridor. Draco turned on his heel to follow her voice with a glance at his watch verifying he still had twenty minutes to make it to his meeting with Blaise Zabini about the files he gave him last week.

Confused mercurial eyes followed the form of Hermione Granger as she be-bopped around her office while she put away reference materials so she could leave for the day. She was singing softly under her breath with strange earmuffs on her head. Her earmuffs seemed to be attached to her hip with a cord made of a strange material.

"You don't know. You don't know, oh. Mmmbop. Duba Du bop, du. Yeah, yeah…" Hermione shimmied as she reached the shelf she was looking for to put away the last book.

Draco narrowed his gaze as he leaned in the open doorway. "Granger!"

Hermione blinked and pulled her ear muffs down around her neck. Draco heard faint musical chords coming from them. "Malfoy? What are you doing here?"

"I just finished my medi-wizard exam and was coming to see Blaise about a file he gave me last week. Were you singing just now?" Draco frowned and checked his watch to see he only had twelve minutes remaining before he had to be in Blaise's office.

"Um, no?" Hermione touched her belt and somehow silenced the music without magic. "Er, you need something from me, then?"

"Not necessarily," Draco smirked.

"In that case, do you mind leaving? I have things to-" Hermione started.

Draco cut her off with a grin, "No, but really, what is an mmmbop?"

Hermione groaned theatrically. "You heard that?"

Draco laughed and walked away. "You have a lovely voice- for a muggleborn, Granger," Draco called mockingly over his shoulder as he left to find Blaise. He did have a reason for being at the Ministry after all.


	5. Round Two Short: Kill the Snake

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round two  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Short (500-2000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 8. [Word] Brave  
** **Word count: (Per Google Docs) 633  
** **Beta(s): Angel  
** **ITALICS with *: Direct quote from movie Deathly Hollows part 2**

 **Kill the Snake**

Harry pulled Neville aside as Ron and Hermione took off through the halls. _"You know Voldemort's snake, Neville? He's got a huge snake... Calls her Nagini... It's got to be killed. Ron and Hermione know that, but just in case they — Just in case they're — busy — and you get the chance —"*_

Neville grimaced at the thought, _"Kill the snake?"*_

 _"Kill the snake."*_ Harry replied with a clap to Neville's shoulder before taking off in the opposite direction from Ron and Hermione.

It wasn't every day that you get a chance to prove yourself in front of everyone that thought you were nothing more than a Hufflepuff badger in a Gryffindor lion's clothing. Neville raced through the school to get to the Headmaster's office. He knew that with Harry, Ron and Hermione off hunting for something in the midst of the Battle that he had to heed what he had been told.

"Kill the snake. Kill the snake." The mantra echoed in his head, and out of his mouth as he kept an eye out for the twelve-foot-long viper.

"Kill the snake. Kill the snake." His strides were long, and each step ricocheted off the stone walls around him as stalked along.

He had soot and dust covering him from head to foot. Bits of gravel from explosions in the castle littered his clothes and hair. "Kill the snake."

He stopped in front of the gargoyle leading to the Headmaster's office. "Move. Hogwarts is under attack and I need to get in the office!"

The gargoyle glared at Neville, but before it could give any sort of response, Voldemort made a Sonorous powered announcement.

" _HARRY POTTER IS DEAD!"*_

Neville snarled at the proclamation and ran outside to confront the Dark Lord, still muttering under his breath, "Kill the snake. Kill the snake."

He stopped when he made it in front of the Hogwarts defenders. He looked at the opposition of Dark Creatures, Death Eaters, and Voldemort himself.

"Ah, you must be Longbottom," the Dark Lord grinned maniacally. "Have you come to join the winning side, then? Or have you come to surrender?"

"NEVER! Harry may be dead, but WE WILL NEVER GIVE UP! THE LIGHT WILL WIN!" The other students, their teachers, and assorted allies took up arms once more at the rallying effect of Neville's yell.

Voldemort snapped his wand up and cast a Full Body-Bind Curse at the defiant Longbottom heir. "So be it, foolish Gryffindor. Bravery isn't everything."

Neville growled his frustrations as Voldemort had the Sorting Hat placed on his head as it burned. Neville snapped through the curse and yanked the hat off, pulling the Sword of Gryffindor from the burning tatters of the Hat as he did so.

Nagini reacted to Neville breaking from the curse with a lunge towards his face, jaw unhinged as she tried to sink her teeth into him. Neville countered her attack with an overhead swing on the Sword, lopping off her head and rendering the Dark Lord mortal.

"You were saying?" Neville taunted. He shot spells from his wand and deflected curses with the Sword.

"KILL HIM!" Voldemort shrieked as he stormed his way into the castle, leaving his Inner Circle to deal with Neville on their own.

"Come and get it," Neville sneered. "The Light will win!"

"THE LIGHT WILL WIN!"

At that scream, both sides surged into battle once more to determine the outcome of the war. No-one noticed in the heat of battle that Harry Potter's body was no longer where it had been dumped. As the fight raged on, Harry made his way inside to face Voldemort for the final time.

Voldemort never saw his death coming, and it was all because of the bravery of a Hufflepuff badger in a Gryffindor lion's clothing.


	6. Round Two Theme: Into a Spider

**A/N** **The Houses Competition**

 **Round two**

 **House: Hufflepuff**

 **Student: Year 7**

 **Category: Theme - Jealousy (2000-5000 Words)**

 **Prompt(s): 3. [Prompt] Nursery Rhyme of your choice (Itsy Bitsy Spider)**

 **10\. [Speech] "H-how long have you been standing there?"**

 **Word count: (Per Google Docs) 2027**

 **Beta(s): Aya, Zoe**

 **Into a Spider**

Ron loved his teddy that his mum and dad gave him more than anything in the world. It was one of the very few things he had been given that wasn't first passed through the possession of all five of his brothers, before finally landing in his arms. He took exceptional care of his teddy, even though he was only three-years-old.

"Mithter Teddy," Ron said imperiously as he marched on chubby legs across his room in front of his lined up toys. "You dee boss of deese miks- mint- mitskrints."

His nose wrinkled as he tried to pronounce the word he had only ever heard in conjunction with his twin brothers at the park. He stopped in front of his teddy with a soft smile. His eyes traveled over the broken chess pieces from his oldest brother's chess set that had finally stopped working after one too many games. He looked at the many fractured magical animal toys that had lost their enchantments- one green dragon, two pixies and a troll being the larger ones.

He happily played with his toys, giving special attention to his cuddly bear, unaware of the two sets of envious brown eyes watching him from the crack in the open doorway. The twins backed away slowly and went back to their shared room. They were glad that their mum and dad had finally moved Ronnie from their room, even though it meant the youngest brother had his own while the twins still shared.

The twins always interspoke with each other. It made their parents mad, but it was a comfort to them. They clasped hands and planned to get their revenge on their baby brother.

"Not fair that-"

"He gets new toys-"

"When we were here fiwst-"

"And we don' get new thin's-"

"And he broked my broom!"

George's bottom lip trembled. "They don't wuv us anymore, Fweddie."

Fred hugged his other half and whimpered, "I think they do, Georgie. They just… fowget about us."

George shook his head, "Mum and Dad can't even tell us apart."

"But they do wuv us. They have to… right?"

"We only five! They should know I'm Fwed an' you's Geowge!"

Fred stomped, wincing as his accidental magic lashed out and broken a picture frame holding their first picture from St Mungos when they were born.

"Oh, no," Fred whimpered again. He rushed to pick up the frame and started to cry. "Mummy's gonna get me a'cause I broked the pi'ture!"

George just watched his twin with a frown. "Nuh-uh, Fweddie. Mum won't get no-one."

George grabbed the picture from his brother and concentrated on Fred not getting in trouble. In the end, he used his fear of Fred getting spanked to make his accidental magic help restore the glass in the frame.

He put the picture back on the lopsided dresser that served to hold all of their clothes and hopped up on his bed. Fred clambered on the bed and snuggled into George's side.

"How do we get him back, Geowgie?"

George grimaced. "He likes 'Mister Teddy' the most of his toys now."

Fred nodded with a growl. "Mummy got it new. He even takes it to bath time, but Mummy puts it away from the water."

"A'fore they gots him bear, I's gonna get my dwagon back to makes him cry."

"A'cause he broked my broom?"

"Yep." George squeezed his twin. "Plan time," he whispered conspiratorially.

The twins pressed their foreheads together and went silent as they closed their eyes to think up an idea.

A few seconds later, they heard their dad stop outside of their open door. "Are you awake, boys? It's time for lunch," he called softly

The twins just stayed laying down without responding.

Their dad scratched his neck and shook his head. "I guess l'll just have Molly put some aside for when they come down after their nap then." Their dad pulled their door mostly shut and went back downstairs.

"That was too close, Geowgie," Fred whispered. "Daddy almost heard us."

George shrugged. "'t's okay. He din't."

"Nap?"

"Yeah," George responded. He snuggled into his twin and let himself drift to sleep.

The twins slept for nearly an hour. They finally made it downstairs, holding hands and rubbing the sleep from their eyes. George yawned, then Fred did as well.

"Stiw sweepy, Fweddie," George complained as he laid his head on his twin's shoulder. His lisping getting worse with his fatigue. "Wanna go bed again."

Fred yawned loudly in George's ear, "Food, then seep. I'm not wake eider."

Molly's head popped around the corner, startling the boys into tripping.

"Mummy! Not nice," George cried as he tried to untangle himself from Fred.

Molly arched an eyebrow and walked around the corner, holding their baby sister. "Be good while I go put Ginevra down for her nap and when I come back, I'll even get the biscuits out for after your lunch."

Fred's eyes got big. "Buskets?"

"Yes, George, biscuits," Molly replied.

Fred's eyes widened and filled with tears as he turned his face into George's shoulder.

"I'm Geowge. He's Fwed!" George said indignantly as he hugged his brother close.

"Sorry, George. Fred. Let me put down Ginny, and I'll be right back." Molly turned away without a thought and took Ginny up to her room.

"You was wight. She cawed me Geowge! I'm Fwed!" Fred cried into George's shoulder.

"I'm sowry, Fweddie. Mummy was… she was…" George huffed and wrapped his arms more tightly around Fred. "I'm sowry."

Molly came back down the stairs a few moments later without Ginny on her hip. "Okay, boys. Are you hungry now? What's wrong?" Molly knelt down and tried to soothe the twins as they clutched each other tightly. "George? Fred?"

"You's c-callin' us the wron' names a-a-a'ain," Fred stuttered as he tried to calm his gasping sobs to respond

The more upset they got, the worse their speech patterns dipped until they almost sounded like they were three instead of five.

"Oh, sweetheart," Molly cooed, "You know I don't mean to upset you, don't you? You two are so alike that it's… difficult for me to tell you apart. Even your freckles are the same!"

"S'not right!" George snapped, pushing Fred behind him and away from their mother. "You should stiw know! You's the mummy! You's a'possed to see we's diff'ert!"

Molly sat back on her heels affronted at the vehemence with which he spoke. "I'm still your mother, and you can't talk to me like that! Do you want a time out?"

"See! You's don' cawe abou' us! You jus' give timeout and span'in's!" George gave a grunt and pushed Molly. "You don' wuv us! You hates us! On'y loves Wonnie and Ginny!"

"Why I never! ARTHUR!" Molly screeched.

George stumbled back and grabbed Fred's hand. George's grip tightened as he saw Molly's eyes narrow in on them, before he bolted from the room, pulling Fred with him.

"FRED! GEORGE! GET BACK HERE THIS INSTANT!" Molly shouted as the boys ran into the backyard and tried to hide from their irate mother.

"Unduh the-yuh," Fred whispered, pointing to their father's shed.

They had dug a hole under the back of it last year when they were trying to hide toys they didn't want to give up to their younger brother.

"Okay," George whispered back.

They squirmed in under the shed and hunkered down, prepared to wait for however long it took for Molly to stop yelling at, and for, them.

After a couple hours, the twins were passed out under the shed, occasional sniffles coming from one or the other as they dreamed that their family wanted to send them away forever.

Arthur finally found the twins after using a "Point Me' spell geared towards them.

"There you are," he sighed, as he looked under the shed.

He'd gone in the shed at first due to the spell, but his wand dipped towards the floor, causing him to try searching around in instead. "Come on, boys. Let's get you inside and cleaned up, hmmm?"

He roused them and helped them crawl out from under the building, then herded them back towards the house. He watched as trepidation filled them the closer they got to the towering building.

"Your mother isn't going to punish you."

"I pusheded her," George whimpered. "She was mean to Fweddie, so I pusheded her."

Arthur shook his head, "She wasn't intentionally mean, boys."

"Wa's ent-en-tio'al?" Fred asked, eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

"In-ten-tion-al. It means on purpose. If it was intentional, that would mean that she said what she did just to upset you."

"Oh." George looked up at his father and crossed his arms defensively, "Does that mean she does wuv us? On'y she's a'ways with Ginny or Wonnie. Nevuh with us."

"She loves you all equally, just like I do, George," Arthur smiled and ruffled his hair.

George eyed his father before huffing, "On'y know it's me a'cause I said he 'as Fweddie."

"I know," Arthur agreed, "but I am trying to learn your differences so I know all the time without hints."

George shrugged and grabbed Fred again. It was time to see what their mother had to say about their attitude earlier.

After forty five minutes of Molly telling them how not to act, the twins were allowed to eat dinner and go up to bed. What she didn't know was that they took that opportunity to take her wand while they were at it.

They watched with angry eyes as Ron sighed and snuggled sleepily into his teddy bear as he settled down to sleep.

Fred gripped their mother's stolen wand as he glared hatefully at his youngest brother. "I's all his fault. He shouldn' be here!" Fred hissed softly.

"Wha' we gonna do?"

"Wonnie likes nuhsuhwy whymes… Le's see how he likes 'Issy Bissy Spiduh'," Fred responded.

"The issy bissy spiduh cwawled up the watuh spout…

"Down came the wain and washed the spiduh out…

"Out came the sun and dried up aww the wain…

"An' the issy bissy spiduh wen' up the spout a'ain…"

As Fred started to sing the nursery rhyme with many lisps and missteps, he swung the stolen wand back and forth in front of him, focussing on the teddy bear that had started the whole problem.

He started to repeat the rhyme, thinking about the spider in the story.

Fred's eyes gleamed with anticipation as he watched the stuffed arms split into four as the legs did the same. The head spun around and grew extra eyes and a set of pincers.

Fred sang the rhyme one last time to complete his anger and jealousy filled spell.

The soft fur turned coarse and wiry, causing Ron to open his eyes and shriek.

"MUUUUUMMMMMMMMYYYY!" He wailed and wailed as he tried to get the bear-turned-spider away from him.

Fred dropped the wand as he and George ran back to their room before their parents made it down to Ron's room. They felt vindicated after all that Ron had done… real or imagined… to them. They didn't need to stay and get in more trouble after the day they had.

"I saw that," came the voice of their brother, Charlie.

"H-how long have you been standing there?" Fred asked softly.

"Long enough. Hurry up and get to your room. If Mum and Dad catch you, they will punish you worse than they already have today."

Charlie pushed the twins softly towards the stairs. "They won't blame me since I'm a 'good kid' to them." He grinned and shooed them up the stairs. "Good night!"

The twins blinked and bolted up the stairs. Charlie would keep their secrets. He was the one to teach them how to get around their parents in the first place. Charlie was their favorite sibling besides each other. He understood their jealousy, and would always protect them, even at the expense of getting in trouble himself instead.

Bill was too busy being an adult and trying to move out of their home as soon as possible. Percy was a stuck up meanie who only cared about the rules. They wouldn't help anyone.


	7. Round Three Drabble: The Stables

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round two  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Drabble (500 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 5. [Creature] Abraxan  
** **Word count: 402 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya**

 **The Stables**

Scorpius ran away from the gardens and into the stables as his father counted.

"-seven, eight, nine, ten! Ready or not, here I come!" Draco called out as he hunted for his son.

Draco searched the gardens, making sure to check below benches and bushes, as well as treetops.

"Scorpius?" Draco called again, slightly worried that he was no longer in the gardens that they had decided to restrict themselves to for their game.

Scorpius peeked around the doorway of the stables, then crept into one of the closed stalls by crawling under the door.

A loud snort from behind him made him freeze.

"Oh, no," Scorpius whimpered, trying to remain calm.

A whiskered muzzle came over his right shoulder as the beast snorted again. "Fa-father!"

Draco paled when he heard Scorpius' voice come from the stables as he drew near.

"SCORPIUS!" Draco ran into the stables, wand drawn.

"Fa-father! H-help!" Scorpius yelped out as the sixteen hand Abraxan stallion crowded him into the back corner of the stall with his wings spread wide.

"MALACHI! Back up!" Draco whipped his wand forward and cast a shield between the winged horse and his son. Draco used the shield to force the Abraxan into the opposite side of the stall.

"Father!" Scorpius cried as he ran into his father's arms.

Draco used his momentum to swing him up onto his hip. He turned and left the stables, using his wand to lock all the doors.

"Never, _ever_ , go in there without your mother or me, Scorpius," Draco scolded as he rubbed his back soothingly. "Malachi and Moloch are not good for little ones such as yourself to be around."

"Not little," Scorpius grunted, his face still buried in Draco's neck. "I'm seven now."

"I know, but I still don't want you going around the Abraxans by yourself until after you get your Hogwarts letter."

"But that's _forever_! Malachi didn' get me."

"Listen to me, Scorpius. It's dangerous! Malachi _could_ have killed you if you weren't careful."

Scorpius nodded. A tremor of fear washed over him as he remembered the looming Abraxan. "Yes, Father."

Draco sighed and ran a hand through his son's hair. "It's not so far away. I just want you to be safe."

"I know."

"Good. Now let's get inside. Your mother had the elves make biscuits for us, and I'm sure we can convince them to give us hot chocolate, too."


	8. Round Three Short: Forgiven, Not

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round two  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Short (500-2000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s):** **1\. [Speech] "From the moment I met you, I knew I would spend the rest of my life avoiding you."  
** **Word count: 1914 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya**

 **Forgiven, Not Forgotten**

Rain drops slid down the window as Neville stared morosely out through the glass. His notes were sitting on the table forgotten at his elbow. He sighed heavily and turned to start putting his things away.

"Damn," he hissed as his notes scattered on the floor when he bumped them. "Just what I need right no-"

"Problems, Longbottom?"

Neville pursed his lips and refused to answer as he knelt to gather his parchments.

"Aw, don't be like that! I'm not _all_ bad," Malfoy said as he planted one foot on top of a parchment, effectively keeping Neville from retrieving it.

"You know what, _Malfoy_?" Neville seethed, turning his rage filled eyes on the blond.

"Hmm?" Malfoy responded. "What is it?"

"From the moment I met you, I knew I would spend the rest of my life avoiding you." Neville stood and drew his wand. "I think I'll start with dumping you on your stupid ar-"

"Gentlemen! This is _my_ _library_! Keep quiet!" Madam Pince scolded as she stalked past them.

Neville sneered at the slightly taller male and hissed, "Stay away from me."

He planted his hands on Malfoy's shoulders and shoved him off of his notes. " _Accio_ parchments." His notes leaped up and into his hands.

Malfoy stood in shock as Longbottom stalked out of the library. "What in Merlin's name was _that_?"

The next day, the rain had cleared up, but it was still overcast and gloomy outside of the castle, so Neville had decided to commandeer an empty classroom to keep an eye on the sky and avoid Malfoy.

"Hiding, Longbottom?"

Neville leaned his head against the window glass and counted slowly to twenty while clenching and unclenching his fists. Finally, he had his temper under control and he turned to face Malfoy.

The blond aristocrat was leaning against the doorway, arms crossed and a smirk adorning his face. He wasn't wearing robes, either.

"Like what you see?" Malfoy taunted as he watched Neville appraise his attire.

Neville ground his teeth and turned away to gather his things as he did the day before.

When Neville had everything in his bag, he turned to glare at the blond again.

"Not gonna talk to me, Longbottom?" Malfoy asked, a strange gleam in his eyes.

Neville just slung his bag over his shoulder and shoved Malfoy out of the doorway to leave the room without speaking one word to his tormentor.

Neville ground his teeth when he saw the glint of blond flash next to him before Malfoy took the seat beside him.

"You can't ignore me forever, Neville. We work together!" Malfoy cajoled.

Neville just set his cutlery down and dabbed at his mouth with his napkin. "I'm going back to my office, Minerva," he said softly to the Headmistress as he stood up.

Headmistress McGonagall arched an eyebrow but nodded. "I will see you in my office later for our meeting, Professor Longbottom."

Neville nodded once sharply, then left the Head Table.

The Headmistress shook her head and motioned for Malfoy to shift over one seat. "Do I need to have another talk with the both of you?"

Malfoy frowned. "No, Headmistress. I was just–I wanted–he won't let me apologize for everything I put him through when we were students. If I knew _why_ , I… I would… well."

Minerva smirked at the stuttering Malfoy. "You want to apologize to the boy you tormented for over eight years- then didn't speak to for three? I _wonder_ why he won't speak with you. Have you considered that maybe he isn't sure that you won't attack him when you corner him day after day?"

Draco ran a hand through his hair and grimaced, "I wouldn't attack him! The War ended and there's nothing for me to fight with him _about_ anymore!"

Minerva shrugged. "Try apologizing with a witness. One of his friends would work. You haven't tried this hard to get Hermione's attention to apologize and you were as bad, if not worse, to her."

Draco glanced down the table to where the Muggle Studies Professor was. "She and I put our issues behind us when I got her, Potter, and Weasley out of my house before the Dark Lord got there."

"Does she know that?"

Draco cocked his head to the side in confusion, "Yes? We have monthly lunches to discuss our classes' outings to make sure the students get a good idea of the Muggle World and the Wizarding World. We've been nothing but civil to each other."

"If you say so, Professor Malfoy." Headmistress McGonagall turned back to her dinner, pleased that she had stalled Malfoy long enough for Neville to hide himself away if he wished.

Several weeks of hunting down Neville, just for him to never speak when Draco spoke, caused him to seek out Granger's advice again.

"Hello, Draco," Hermione said without looking up from her grading. "What can I do for you today?"

"I- did I ever- did you _really_ forgive me for everything that I- that I put you and the others through when we were kids?" Draco stuttered as he moved to his chair that Hermione had put there for him in her office.

Hermione set her quill down and looked at Draco assessingly. "Yes? What brought this on, Draco? We have had things settled between us for almost two years now. I hope you don't think I am playing a long game against you."

Draco shook his head. Leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees, he began to run his hands across the back of his head. "Minerva started it… but really, it's Longbottom."

"What about him?"

"He won't speak to me at all! Not even a 'Piss off, Malfoy!' from him!" Draco clutched his hair, disrupting the leather strap he'd used to tie it back.

Hermione leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. "Have you tried to make amends? You did treat him rather appallingly when we were kids. He's always been the sweetest of my Housemates. I was rather shocked he wasn't a Hufflepuff."

Draco winced and stared at the floor. "I _keep trying_ to talk to him, but he won't even let me. I want to apologize, he just…"

Hermione shook her head and sighed. "I'll see if I can set up a meeting with him. You might have to say what you want with me there though…"

Draco nodded. "I'm fine with that! I just want to- I need to tell him I'm _sorry_ and I _can't_ if he won't _listen_ to me."

"Go on then, Draco. I'll try to get him in the same room with you." Hermione waved a hand as she looked at the most recent stack of student essays.

Draco stood and gave a slight bow before leaving in a flurry of robes reminiscent of Snape.

Hermione snorted softly. "Do you believe me now, Neville?"

Neville ended his _disillusionment_ and sat in the recently vacated seat. "You saw the memories of how he's instigated each meeting, Hermione." His gaze narrowed, "And what was that Hufflepuff nonsense?"

Hermione gave a short bark of laughter, "It will make his apology that much more interesting."

Neville rolled his eyes. "I reserve the right to leave if I am uncomfortable… or to see if he will tell you the truth."

"What truth?"

"You'll see… maybe."

Hermione just nodded in exasperation. "I agree. Now please get out. I _do_ have to finish this grading."

Neville gave a mock bow, then left the office.

The promised meeting didn't happen for another two weeks, which passed rather quietly for Neville. Malfoy had ceased trying to corner him every moment he wasn't teaching.

Neville glanced at his watch and sighed. He didn't have time to clean up properly before his 'meeting' with Hermione. His hands were caked in dirt and muck from his repotting endeavor. He went over to the wash station he had installed in Greenhouse Three and tried to get the worst of the mess off.

"Ten minutes til doomsday," he muttered mutinously.

He decided to just forego any attempt to get his robes into a state to be seen and threw them across his table on the way out of the greenhouse. He carelessly threw a locking charm at the greenhouse as he walked away. Some of his mandrakes had a… certain feeling about buildings… and he didn't want to deal with _more_ repotting.

Hermione arched an eyebrow and shook her head at Neville's rolled sleeves and mud-caked dragonhide boots. "You are a _mess_!"

"Who cares? I'm the Herbology Professor. It's in the job description that dirt will never go away."

"Yeah, yeah. _Evanesco_ ," Hermione cast at his boots to keep him from tracking mud into her office.

"So, why are we meeting here instead of the Three Broomsticks?"

"Well…" Hermione hedged.

"I asked her to set up a meeting for me, Longbottom," Malfoy stated, coming through the door with a smirk.

Neville glared at the former Slytherin without responding.

"Hear him out, Neville," Hermione urged as she sat at her desk to play mediator.

"No, Hermione! I _told_ you what he's done!" Neville cast a speaking glance at Hermione before turning to face the blond.

"Lo-Neville, please- I just- you- we-" Draco closed his eyes and slumped against the wall as Neville shoved him out of the way to leave. "I t-told you, Granger."

"I don't understand. He didn't even let you finish stumbling through your apology."

"He hates me more than my father hated muggleborns."

"He should still listen to you, though! The War ended three years ago! You paid your debt to society and have been trying to make amends to him. Obviously, you've left something _important_ out of our discussions. What did you _do_ to make him react this way?"

Draco shuffled his feet and looked away from Hermione. "I… may have… well, Ikissedhimandaskedhimout."

"Wanna run that by me again?"

"I kissed him… and asked him out."

"Before or after apologizing for being a prat throughout our entire school career?"

"Er… before."

Hermione slapped the heel of her hand against her forehead before dragging her hand down her face. "You did things backward."

"I KNOW! I've been _trying_ to fix it! Merlin, woman, I'm not a _complete_ idiot."

"You could have fooled me," came the subdued voice of Neville as he walked back in.

"Ne-Neville… how much did you- did you hear?" Draco twitched towards Neville before standing his ground.

"Enough."

"N-no. I didn't say so- sorry. I _am_ sorry- sorry for everything I did to you when we- when we were kids. I was… immature… and spiteful." Draco hung his head and clenched his hands against the sides of his robes.

Neville arched an eyebrow and glanced at Hermione who shrugged. "How are you going to make it up to me?"

Draco's head whipped up as his eyes widened. "I- I don't have much of my fortune left… that's why I was so eager to take this Wizarding Customs Professorship…"

Neville shook his head. "I want you to ask me again. The right way."

"For forgiveness? That's what I've been _trying to do_!"

"I already forgave you. Ask again."

"What- then why- you… oh," Draco murmured, "Lord Longbottom, will you allow me to privilege of properly courting you?"

Neville smiled. "It's about time. I accept the courtship request of Lord Malfoy."

"That's great. Now get out of my office. I've got things to do," Hermione sniped, throwing a cushion at the couple.


	9. Round Three Theme: Penpals

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round two  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Theme (2000-5000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): Deception -** **2\. [Pairing] Draco/Theo  
** **Word count: 2087 (Per Google Docs)**

 **Penpals**

After the War ended, several new companies cropped up, one of which was a Wizarding version of Muggle Penpals. You could submit an anonymous, or not - depending on your preference, questionnaire to the company, and they would pair you up with someone of similar interests. It was up to the witch or wizard to write back or not once they received notice of their matches. Some were paired with none, and some ended up with multiple penpals.

Draco had received only two matches. One preferred to remain anonymous, the other- well, Draco wasn't sure _why_ Theo Nott had decided to be upfront with his identity, but he wasn't going to let the opportunity slip through his fingers to talk to the man again. Draco decided to not write to his anonymous penpal unless Theo didn't reply to him.

Draco had been using a disguising quill to keep Theo from analyzing his writing and discovering his identity, but he felt it was time to bring their relationship to the real world instead of just on paper. He wasn't sure of his reception though. His subterfuge in the attempt to keep his identity hidden may, in fact, be the cause of his downfall.

Draco thought about the cause of their abrupt shift in friendship with a sigh.

 _Draco flinched as the material of his uniform shirt scraped across his newly Marked arm._

" _Drake? What happened? Did you let another hippogriff maul you in Care of Magical Creatures?" Theo called out Draco across their shared room. He had apparently been watching Draco favoring his arm but hadn't connected the dots to the fact that it was his_ _ **left**_ _arm that Draco was cradling close to his body._

" _What? No! Of course not! I dropped that class, remember? They let that oaf come back to teach. If we had kept Grubbyplank, I would have stayed in the class… but not with the groundskeeper."_

 _Draco shrugged his bag onto his shoulder carefully. He looked around his bed one last time, then turned to face Theo. "You coming?"_

" _Drake… I want you to tell me the truth."_

 _Draco shifted from foot to foot. "O...kay?"_

" _Why did you_ _ **really**_ _go home last weekend? Was there really a family emergency?" Theo twisted his hands on the strap of his bag._

 _Draco kept his head down as he fiddled with the strap of his own bag. "Er, technically… it was a family emergency..."_

 _He cut off as Theo interjected, "You've been_ _ **Marked**_ _!" Theo's voice was venomous in his anger. "Why would you-!" Theo turned his back on Draco and left without another word._

 _By the time Draco had recovered and followed, Theo refused to speak to him again. Draco stood by and watched, as class, after class, after class, Theo requested partner changes. He kept his mouth shut when Theo went to Professor Snape for a room change as well. If Theo wanted to dismiss him completely, that was his choice._

After six weeks of back and forth letters, Draco finally decided to propose a meet and greet with his penpal.

Draco closed his eyes and breathed deeply. "Just one meeting," he whispered. "One meeting to tell him the truth. To ask him to accept me as I am."

Draco cast a _Tempus_ to see the time. His eyes shot open as he realized he only had an hour to get ready for his date… well, meeting at any rate.

"Tobey," Draco called.

A house elf popped in quietly at the call, "Tobey is being here, Master Draco Malfoy."

"Where did my new set of dress robes end up?"

"The lightses ones? Pretty cream color?"

"Yes yes. The cream and mint robes. I _just_ bought them. Where are they?"

"I gets them for you, Master Draco Malfoy." Tobey popped out of the room.

While Tobey was gone hunting for the robes, Draco went to take a shower. He stood under the cascading water for ten minutes, just thinking about how he could explain himself to Theo… if he would even give him the chance to speak. Draco shook himself and washed quickly, then got out of the shower and used a drying charm.

"Tobey! The robes!"

"Here they is, Master Draco Malfoy!" Tobey popped them in and laid them on the bed carefully. He popped out again, leaving Draco to dress.

Draco cast another Tempus and blanched. He should have left five minutes ago to get there early. Now he would be arriving almost exactly at the designated time.

He grabbed his wand and _apparated_ to the restaurant he had picked for the meeting.

Theo watched the other patrons of the restaurant with a bored look on his face. His penpal had set up this meeting… date… meeting, but had set the reservations under Theo's name to maintain their anonymity. Theo glanced down at the menu again and sighed. For someone that wanted this meeting, they were sure taking their sweet time getting there.

A ruckus at the hostess stand caught his interest. Theo's green eyes narrowed as he saw the cause of the disturbance. Draco Malfoy was in attendance at this restaurant. Theo had spent the better part of the last two years attempting to keep himself set apart from the Death Eaters. He closed his eyes and remembered the moment he found out Draco had been marked by that madman.

" _Drake? What happened? Did you let another hippogriff maul you in Care of Magical Creatures?" Theo called out tauntingly to his friend across their shared room. He had seen Draco favoring his arm but hadn't connected the dots to the fact that it was his_ _ **left**_ _arm that Draco was cradling close to his body._

" _What? No! Of course not! I dropped that class, remember? They let that oaf come back to teach. If we had kept Grubbyplank, I would have stayed in the class… but not with the groundskeeper."_

 _Draco shrugged his bag onto his shoulder carefully. He looked around his bed one last time, then turned to face Theo. "You coming?"_

" _Drake… I want you to tell me the truth."_

 _Draco shifted from foot to foot. "O...kay?"_

" _Why did you_ _ **really**_ _go home last weekend? Was there really a family emergency?" Theo twisted his hands on the strap of his bag as he watched Draco intently._

" _Er, technically… it was a family emergency..."_

 _Theo took a step back in horror. "You've been_ _ **marked**_ _!" Theo's voice hissed between clenched teeth. "Why would you-!" Theo turned his back on his friend and left without another word._

 _By the time Draco had recovered and followed, Theo refused to speak to him again. In their shared classes, Theo sat next to Pansy or Blaise instead of Draco. He even got Goyle to switch rooms with minimal fuss._

Theo was brought back to the present when he saw Draco standing next to his reserved table. "Can I help you?"

"Well," Draco started, wringing his hands together in an uncharacteristic show of nervousness. "I was hoping you'd be okay with me staying for at least the meal before you leave." The words rushed out of Draco's mouth before he realized he had spoken.

Theo picked up his glass and took a sip of water to give himself a moment to think.

Draco stood not so patiently by the table and awaited Theo's response.

Theo set the glass down and frowned lightly, "You are 'Raven'? The person I've been writing to these last few months?"

Draco nodded quickly. "I wanted to be myself. It was easier to lose my name and start fresh than it was to be a Malfoy."

"Uh huh. Fine," Theo waved to the empty seat in front of him. "Let's have it then. You think you can explain everything in just an hour?"

"No," Draco said, even as he sat down. "It would take much longer than an hour to absolve myself of my mistakes when it comes to you."

Draco absently tapped on water and a random meal on his menu to have his order sent to the kitchen.

"All you get is an hour, Draco. Make it count for something." Theo tapped on an Italian inspired dish, then set his menu aside. "I have to be back at work by two."

Draco frowned and tried to get his thoughts in order. He thought he would have more time to try to win Theo over, but apparently, Theo did not want to give him the chance.

"You don't even want to be here, do you? You wouldn't normally agree to an anonymous meeting with someone. Did you know it was me?" Draco reached for his glass that had just materialized on the table.

Theo shook his head. "I did not know it was you, but I had a hunch from reading the letters that you were a reformed Death Eater or a Ministry flunkie. I thought you might have been Blaise, or maybe the odd Weasley brother that works in the Ministry."

"You thought I was a _Weasley_?" Draco's scandalized voice was a bit louder than he expected.

"Well, you did join the Penpal Service as an anonymous writer. I didn't have much to go off of. Plus you used a disguising quill to keep me from recognizing your handwriting. The amount of deception that you went through to keep me from knowing you are _you_ is ridiculous." Theo calmly started to eat as he ignored Draco's blustering.

"How can you sit there so calmly after everything? You gave up on me without letting me explain why I did what I did," Draco picked at the salad that had appeared in front of him. "I couldn't even finish a sentence before you condemned me without remorse. You switched partners, changed rooms, and _stopped interacting_ with me on any level." Draco took a deep breath before plowing on, "Do you hate me?"

Theo snorted. "To hate you, I would have to know you, would I not?"

"That's just it, though! You _do_ know me! Or you did before you stopped speaking to me. Twelve years of friendship, and you cast me aside because I made a choice to either save my family or have them killed in front of me. I know that your father died in service to the Dark Lord and that you didn't join him because there was no one to drag you in front of him, but don't try to tar me with the same brush as my father and yours! I did not _want_ the Mark. I took it to save Mother."

Draco dropped his fork on his plate and wiped his face with his napkin. "This was obviously a mistake. I see that now. I will just be going."

"Wait-" Theo latched onto Draco's arm as he tried to stand. "I'm sorry about the way I acted, but you have to see it from my angle too."

"What angle is that?" Draco questioned wearily.

"I had just received word that my Father died on a raid, my sister's betrothal arrangement fell through with his death. I became Lord Nott at just sixteen years of age! I had to take over negotiations for my sister, set up the Dowager Vault for my mother, and still try to maintain my placement in school as one of the top five students. When I saw that you had pledged yourself to that- that madman, I _had_ to distance myself. If only to save my sister and mother from having to plan a double funeral."

"Then why didn't you _say something_ ," Draco hissed. "All it would have taken was a simple explanation. It took you less than five minutes to tell me all this now. Why couldn't you have done it then? Or why couldn't you have let _me_ tell you then?"

"I was scared. I didn't want to be dragged down by you. I canceled a contract with the Malfoy family when I knew you had the Mark. I had already escaped the clutches of the Dark Pretender. I didn't need you pulling me back in as a fiance."

"Fiance?"

"Yes. Fiance."

"I didn't know we had a contract."

"That would be because I canceled it the second my father's will was read."

Draco shook his head. "I need to think about all this."

Theo glanced at his watch and shrugged. "Suit yourself. I need to get back to work now anyway."

"Will you answer if I call on you?"

Theo arched an eyebrow. "Guess you'll have to wait and see."


	10. Round Four Drabble: Interruptions

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round Four  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Drabble (500 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 1. [Speech] "No, no… keep going… I want to see where this ends up."  
** **Word count: 227 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya, Zoe  
** **warning: Semi Crack!Fic**

 **Interruptions**

"What was that?" Ginny questioned when she heard a muffled grunt.

Hermione pulled Ginny back so that they remained out of sight of the people around the corner.

"Hold on!" Hermione pulled a mirror out of her bag and held it near the floor at an angle to allow both the girls to see around the corner with ease.

"I think it's Harry and Malfoy going at each other's throats again."

"They aren't fighting… Is he… are they kissing?" Ginny bolted around the corner to try to separate the two teens.

Draco languorously pulled back from Harry's neck where he'd been placing several love bites at the intrusion of Ginny and Hermione.

Hermione groaned, "No, no… keep going… I want to see where this ends up."

"Voyeur much, Hermione?" Harry growled as he straightened his robes.

"She only interrupted because she's just jealous that she can't have you, Harry," Draco cooed mockingly.

"How could you kiss Malfoy, Harry?" Ginny asked with tears in her eyes.

"Uh, with my lips?" Harry replied sarcastically. He turned to Draco, "Honestly, I think Ginny is the jealous one."

Draco snorted and grabbed Harry's sleeve. "Let's go. I think we gave Granger and Weaselette enough of an eyeful for today."

Harry grinned at the blond. "Okay, Draco."

The two walked off leaving a daydreaming Hermione and a distraught Ginny in their wake.


	11. Round Four Short: Perks of Being Silent

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round four  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Short (500-2000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 1. [Speech] "Sometimes my greatest accomplishment is keeping my mouth shut."  
** **Word count: 852 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya**

 **Perks of Being Silent**

Ron, Harry, and Hermione all sat in chairs in front of the two most strict Professors and the Headmaster.

Hermione was silently trying to backtrack to figure out how they had been brought before this panel of judges, the protests of 'We just want to understand what happened. You are not in trouble', notwithstanding.

Ron was repressing his memories of the Department of Mysteries by replaying a chess game that Harry had managed to win in his head trying to understand where he misstepped to allow his talentless at chess friend beat him.

Harry was sullenly glaring at Snape thinking insults as loudly and violently as he could, interspersed with memories of Sirius laughing as he fell through the Veil.

Professor Snape sneered at the petulant teen, but otherwise did nothing to indicate that he was using _Legilimancy_ to try to get to the bottom of the matter at hand.

"Come now, Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall chided, "Surely you have some insight as to what happened to Professor Umbridge."

Hermione blinked. ' _That is what they are after? Professor 'The Ministry is Always Right' Umbridge?_ ' She snorted loudly and shook her head. "Nope. No idea. I haven't seen her since a little while after the OWLs."

"Mr. Potter?" Headmaster Dumbledore implored, "Do _you_ have any idea to Professor Umbridge's whereabouts?"

Harry slouched down further into his chair and answered, "Why would I care about that stupid toad woman after what she did to me all year? _You_ three were no help in protecting the students, and now you are trying to locate the menace that savaged the students in _droves_ to what? Pat her on the head and tell her how great a teacher she is?" Harry's hand clenched making the Black Quill scarred words stand out in sharp relief. "Remember, _Professors_ , **I must not tell lies**. I don't know _where_ she is, but I do hope she _never_ comes back."

Headmaster Dumbledore looked like he aged decades in moments at the visible proof of the Black Quill usage on his students.

"Tell me, Headmaster," Hermione interjected before Harry could really get on a roll, "What happened to the wards around Hogwarts that are supposed to prevent Class 'C' and higher Dark Items from entering the premises? To that end, we had two Death Eaters on Hogwarts grounds, not including Professor Snape, last year. Shouldn't there be a ward to detect and expel anyone with the Dark Mark from the Castle? It can't be that hard to implement, considering I designed a ward sequence and initiated it at my own home and my parents' deal practice over the summer since it doesn't require active wanded magic to carve runes."

Professor Snape started to draw his wand on the witch as she spoke.

"Keep your hands away from your wand, Snape," Harry hissed, almost sliding into Parseltongue in his ire.

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat, "I would like to take a look at that ward scheme when you have a chance, Miss Granger, but there is no need for you and Mr. Potter to go off on Headmaster Dumbledore like you just did. Fifteen points deduction from each of you for your cheek."

"Thirty points from your own House, Professor? Maybe you could teach Snape to act like a teacher and take proportionate points from his House. Or maybe have him put up shields in his classroom so that his idiot snakes stop throwing ingredients into our cauldrons to try to kill us?" Harry snorted. "Nevermind. You wouldn't leash your pet Death Eater even if it meant saving lives."

Snape snarled and pulled his wand on Harry. Within seconds, Ron, Harry, and Hermione all had their wands trained on their Potions Professor.

"Well, Potter? Too scared to take me on your own, you arrogant brat?" Snape hissed.

"You mean am I not _stupid_ enough to take you on my own. I'm not a complete prig, you know. I do realize that you are more advanced in magic than I am, but you won't be able to dodge three curses at once."

"Severus!" Professor McGonagall cried, stepping between the students and her fellow teacher. "You cannot just draw your wand on students!"

"Shut up, Minerva! You heard the brat!"

"It doesn't matter! He's just a boy."

"Perhaps we should postpone this conversation for another time," Headmaster Dumbledore cut in. "Miss Granger, Messers Weasley and Potter, you should head back to your common room now."

"Don't forget to give me those calculations, Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall added as the students filed out of the office.

Ron sighed when they made it around the corner and out of earshot of the teachers. "You know something?"

"Oh, are you awake now, Ron?" Hermione asked scathingly.

Ron grinned suddenly, "Sometimes my greatest accomplishment is keeping my mouth shut."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"I now have the perfect memory to use for summoning my Patronus! You two putting that dungeon bat in his place is now my happiest memory!"

The three looked at each other and burst out laughing. "If you say so, Ron. If you say so."


	12. Round Four Theme: Trials in Homework

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round four  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Theme (2000-5000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): Happy Family - 1. [Speech] "Why are there letters? You told me math was all about numbers."  
** **Word count: 2067 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Pixileanin, Aya**

 **Trials in Homework**

Harry pulled his bag over his shoulder after tucking his phone into his back pocket. He checked that his wand was secured under his sleeve in the dragonhide holster and nodded to himself. "Time to get to class."

He walked out of his apartment and locked the door behind him, sliding his keys into the pocket of his jumper. "Art History, Biology, and a four-hour shift at the bookstore."

He walked leisurely to campus and made his way to his first class. It was one of two that he didn't actually have with his cousin. They had decided that it would be easiest on them both to have their core classes, the ones required for all career paths, at the same time. Dudley wanted to be a Child Protective Service Agent, while Harry was on the track to be a Substance Abuse Counselor to try and figure out a way to help witches and wizards that became addicted to potions or spells.

Once his class ended, he had only fifteen minutes to get from one side of campus to the other for his next class. He ducked into an unused classroom and _apparated_ to a set of coordinates on the other side of campus one building over from where he needed to get. Even though he was proud to be a wizard, this was not the place to show it. Muggles just wouldn't understand. Doubly, and understandably so, it was against the rules to let a Muggle see magic in the first place. Harry made sure that no one saw him leave the building, and then double checked his bag to make sure he had the homework for his class.

Harry sat next to his cousin in their shared Biology class. He saw a familiar head of chocolate brown curls and glanced over at Hermione wistfully. He only allowed himself to stare for a moment before focussing on the whiteboard to see what the agenda was for the day.

"That your girlfriend, Harry?" Dudley teased, bumping his shoulder lightly.

Bumping Dudley's shoulder in return, Harry retorted, "No, Dudley. It's nothing. Now pay attention. Professor Laurie just walked in and he's a stickler for the rules." Harry pulled out a couple of pens and a couple of spiral notebooks to take notes. He handed one set to Dudley, who took it gratefully.

The class was only an hour and a half long that day, so when Professor Laurie released them, the cousins went their separate ways. Harry waved goodbye to Dudley and headed back to their apartment to get ready for work, while Dudley gathered his belongings to go to another class.

Harry thought about how Dudley had brought up the subject of Hermione. He wished that Dudley hadn't seen any of that. It wasn't something he wanted to get into with his cousin. It wasn't something he liked to think about. Not in the greatest of moods, Harry entered his apartment and threw his backpack on the floor, next to the pile of shoes by the door.

"Oh well," he said. "Maybe a four-hour shift will take my mind off of things."

* * *

Harry groaned as he dropped his bag on the dining table. "Uuuugh. That was a brutal shift." He noticed that Dudley had been home earlier because the pile of shoes had been neatly stacked up on the shoe rack. Harry kicked his shoes off on top of them and collapsed onto the couch.

The bookstore had been particularly slow that day. Harry had been assigned to reshelve the books from the front of the store. It didn't seem like a difficult thing to do, but then he hadn't counted on every single book in his cart to be located in almost opposite ends of the shop. By the time his four hours were up, Harry's toes felt like they were about to fall off.

He had only been home for about thirty minutes when Dudley slammed into their shared apartment.

"Harry?" Dudley asked in a depressed tone.

"Yeah, Big D?" Harry responded, only half paying attention to his cousin as he tried to stretch some of the kinks out of his back from being on his feet for several hours at work.

Dudley was staring at the shoes. He took Harry's shoes without saying anything and set them neatly in a row with the other shoes on the rack. "Why did we decide to live together?" Dudley grunted as he flopped ungracefully onto the sofa next to Harry.

"Because your mum and dad wouldn't pay for you to live on campus _or_ to get your own place?" Harry queried back, finally lowering his arms from his stretches.

Dudley laughed softly, "Yeah, they weren't too happy when they found out I got accepted here at York St. John University. I owe that to you and your study guides, by the way. You were a lifesaver back then." He glowered and continued, "Mum and Dad wanted to send me to the University of Surrey and stay at home while giving them my paychecks for rent."

"They really wanted you to _pay_ to live at home and go to Uni?" Harry grimaced at the thought of living even longer with his heinous relatives and sent up a silent thanks for his cousin becoming a decent human being after the Dementor attack when they were just fifteen.

The following three years just made him that much better of a person without having his parents influencing him to be a bully and a thug. Of course, the fact that they had to hide their newfound _good_ relationship with each other from everyone they knew was difficult, but not impossible at the time. Dudley would send copies of his school assignments to Harry so he could keep up with Muggle school, and Harry would send back his notes after working the assignments through.

"Yeah, and they just invited Aunt Marge to live-in full time because she lost the farm where she was breeding her hideous beasts."

Dudley paused as he and Harry both gave full body shudders at that horrible thought.

"At least Ripper is dead now, so I don't have to worry about the brute trying to bite me when I come home for mandatory holiday visits with my parents. You're lucky they don't want _you_ to come ho-" Dudley cut off abruptly and turned pained eyes on his cousin.

"I didn't mean anything bad by that," he whispered hoarsely. "You _know_ I feel bad about how rotten I was as a kid."

"It's fine, Dudley. I don't want to see them, either. Besides, I _do_ know that you are a better person now," Harry whispered.

"Anyways," Dudley cleared his throat, " _Why_ did we take the same classes as each other again? You haven't been to normal school in eight years! How are you getting things faster than I am?" Dudley slumped onto the sofa with a groan.

"I went to school with Hermione Granger. She's one of my best mates," Harry snorted.

' _Was'_ , whispered his brain. ' _She_ was _one of your best mates.'_ Harry shook his head at himself and then saw Dudley's blank expression. "She's the brainiac in our Biology and Calculus classes."

Dudley's eyes widened in understanding. "You went to wizard school with that pretty girl you were staring at in class today?" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"Yeah, Dudley, I just said that. She wasn't always that pretty, either," Harry retorted as he started getting his cooking implements together in the kitchen to cook dinner for the both of them. He hunted through the pantry and crisper to see what they had to make a meal out of. "She used the chance given by Malfoy and his goons hitting her with a jinx to shrink her teeth down to be even."

"But she's, like, normal! She doesn't dress funny like that Ron bloke who came to visit you a few weeks ago!"

"That would be because Hermione was raised 'normal' as you put it. Her parents own the Granger and Granger Orthodontics and Dentistry practice in Kensington." As Harry talked, he found himself getting more comfortable telling Dudley about his former best friend.

"Really? My dentist is her mum?"

"I guess. I never went to your appointments or had any of my own, if you'll recall."

"Oh… I forgot. Anyway, she's a what you call it...muddle-born then? Like your mum?"

"Muggleborn, yes," Harry corrected. "Just like my mum. Hermione is the first witch in her family."

"You said she's your friend, but you've never invited her over… did you have a falling out?" Dudley asked with concern coloring his voice.

Harry sighed, "She doesn't want to talk to me anymore."

"Why?"

"I don't know, Dud. I just know that she told me she wants space away from me."

"Should I talk to her?"

"No! Just- don't- leave it alone, Dudley."

Harry didn't understand Hermione's decision, but, as her friend, he found that he wanted… no, he needed to respect it. There were many times at Hogwarts that Hermione had accepted inexplicable things from him. It was only fair to return the favor. Whatever she had going on inside her, he knew that she would eventually work it out. He just hoped they could still be friends whenever that happened.

He finished his perusal of the available ingredients and called out to Dudley to change the subject. "Spaghetti, salad, and garlic bread or meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and green beans for dinner, Dud?"

"Do the spaghetti tonight, Harry. I can never get the pasta right even with all your training me in the kitchen. I can do the meatloaf tomorrow since I'll get home before you. According to our calendar, you have a six-hour shift at the bookstore and I only have our shared Calculus class." Dudley frowned, "Just so you know, I am _not_ dropping the Hermione thing, Harry. I'm just giving you a pass for now."

Harry just grunted a non-response back and turned to get his ingredients in order so he could just dump and go on each portion of the meal. That's almost exactly what he was giving Hermione. Time. Time to decide if their eight years of friendship was worth continuing in her eyes.

Dudley went to his room while Harry worked his own special brand of magic in the kitchen to get his homework for Biology. He worked on that while Harry cooked, only setting it aside when he called out that dinner was ready.

Harry grinned at Dudley's moan of delight as he ate. "You got dishes tonight since I cooked?" he teased.

"Yeah," Dudley grinned back.

After dinner, Dudley went into the kitchen to wash up the dishes while Harry finished up an English assignment. Harry hadn't had a proper family when he and Dudley had lived with the Dursleys growing up. But now, he and Dudley made quite a good family. It was a little dysfunctional at times, but they truly supported each other. They were now, finally, like the brothers they should have been. He finished writing his short essay as Dudley walked back to the dining table.

"Ah, just in time, cousin mine," Harry chimed, setting his books out on the dining table to do his homework for Calculus. Harry opened up his Calculus textbook and pulled the worksheets out that the Professor assigned three days earlier. "We only have to do the first two sheets for Calculus this week, right?"

"Yeah." Dudley pulled out his own unfinished Calculus homework to sit down and work on it with Harry.

Dudley glanced at the homework, looked up at Harry, then immediately did a double take at the homework again. "Harry?"

"Yeah, Dud?" Harry didn't even bother to look up from the equation he was working on. "What is it?"

"Why are there letters? You told me math was all about numbers," Dudley pouted. "I don't remember Professor Mallone saying anything about letters last class!"

"That's because you slept for the last half hour!"

"I did not!" Dudley exclaimed. "I was just resting my eyes." He stuck his nose up in the air snootily. ' _He looks just like one of his relatives like that_ ,' Harry thought. Dudley must have thought the same thing because he immediately dropped the act and looked shamefully at Harry. "Sorry, mate."

Harry just grinned and laughed as he went about completing the assignment.


	13. Round Five Drabble: The Discussion

**A/N  
The Houses Competition**  
 **Round five**  
 **House: Hufflepuff**  
 **Student: Year 7**  
 **Category: Drabble (500 Words)**  
 **Prompt(s): 2. [First Line] His/Her/Their hiding place had been discovered. What on earth was/were he/she/they going to do now?**  
 **Word count: 429 (Per Google Docs)**  
 **Beta(s): aya**

The Discussion

His hiding place had been discovered. What on earth was he going to do now? Harry looked frantically for a way out before he could be captured. Unfortunately, he wasn't fast enough.

"Found you!" Hermione crowed as she yanked Harry from the alcove he'd been trying to hide from her in.

"Aww, Hermione," Harry whined, trying to pull away from his only true friend this year. "I don't wanna go!"

Hermione just kept pulling him towards the classroom where Professor McGonagall had set up for the second round of dance lessons for the Yule Ball. "Get over it! You have to learn, or you'll embarrass the school!"

Harry tried futilely to make Hermione loosen her grip on his wrist. "Tell me, Hermione, why should I care about embarrassing them when they did nothing but ridicule me and call me a liar until the First Task?"

Hermione stopped in the middle of the hall and looked at Harry with concern, "Did they start something again? Did Ronald say something?"

"Nothing recently, but he is trying to get back in my good graces...not that it's working for him. I told him I didn't enter and he still called me a liar like the rest. You and Neville are the only ones to stand by me in the whole school."

Hermione frowned. "I'll go tell Viktor that I can't go to the ball with him because I have a previous commitment to you if it would help."

Harry shook his head, "You actually got a date fair and square for the Ball. I'll just keep looking for one on my own. I don't want to take any of the two-faced Gryffindors, Slytherin hates me on principle, and Hufflepuff hates me for stealing Cedric's thunder. Do you know any 'Claws that would go with me without needing validation?"

Hermione tilted her head and eyed Harry. "Maybe someone just as outcast as you were earlier this year?"

"You know someone like that? I was reviled, Hermione!" Harry gaped at her. "Is she bullied?"

Hermione bit her lip and nodded. "I think the only person that doesn't treat her like complete trash is Ginny because she's really smart."

"What's her name?"

Hermione hesitated before responding, "Luna Lovegood."

"I think I'd like to meet her."

"I thought you might. I guess we can skip the lesson today. There's another one in two days anyway."

Harry smiled. No dance lessons _and_ he was going to meet a possible new friend to help out of being bullied. His hiding had paid off big time in his eyes.


	14. Round Five Short: Learning a Lesson

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round five  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Short (500-2000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 4. [Speech] "Huh, and you actually believed him/her/them?"  
** **Word count: 1048 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Amulya**

 **Learning A Lesson**

Draco watched from his table as Hermione stared at the door with a frown for the twelfth time in five minutes. He observed her as she checked her watch and glared at the fact that nearly no time at all had passed since she had checked it only forty seconds prior.

"Where are they?" Hermione hissed as she stared down at her table and the piles of books that she had pulled from the shelves for the project assigned by Professor Snape's replacement.

Professor Snape was still recovering from Nagini's bite at Saint Mungo's. The previous year's Seventh Year students had returned as Eighth Year students to get their NEWTs while all other years sat through revisions to make sure they were where they needed to be for their year levels.

Another twenty minutes passed and Draco watched as Hermione repeated her process over and over, not getting anywhere with her project due to the absence of her lab partners.

"Seriously, Harry? Ron? Where are you two? We had this study session planned for a week!" Hermione finally dropped her head to her table and let out a sigh of resignation.

Draco huffed and gathered his things to move to her table. "Granger?"

"They stood me up for our study group. They swore they would hold off on flying until we had gotten at least an idea of what we are going to do for our project!" Hermione started to furiously shove her things into her bag.

"Huh, and you actually believed them? They are not what one would call academically inclined, Granger." Draco reached across the table to settle his hand on her bag and halt her progress in packing. "You still have time to change lab partners. Professor Cambridge is fairly accommodating to his top performers in his class."

"I know, but…" She trailed off and looked at Draco thoughtfully, "Malfoy, are you offering to trade one of your partners for me to join your group?"

Draco shrugged. "Theo could do his project with Potter and Weasley and still manage to pull an 'O'... now whether or not Potter and Weasley could do the same is still up for debate. Blaise would probably spend the entire time trying to flirt with Potter though."

Hermione snorted, "Blaise likes Harry?"

"No, he just flirts with people with dark hair and bright eyes regardless of gender." Draco pulled out his notes for Transfiguration.

"You sound a little bitter about that, Malfoy," Hermione grinned at the pureblood heir as she followed his lead and pulled out her own Transfiguration notes.

"Am not," Draco muttered. "I just know my worth."

Hermione rolled her eyes, "Is this another one of your, 'I'm a rich little lordling in the making' speeches? Because I'll have you know that I'm not poor by any means."

"But you are Muggle-born!" Draco abandoned his homework to stare incredulously at Hermione.

"So what? Why does being Muggle-born automatically mean that I am poor?" Hermione glared venomously at Draco completely forgetting the homework she was going to work on.

"Because, usually, Muggle-borns are poor coming into Hogwarts. They tend to have to spend their family's entire savings to pay for tuition and school supplies for seven years. It's not because I am being a jerk about your blood status like when we were younger, Granger, I swear."

She tilted her head to the side and studied Draco's face for any hint of deception. She mused aloud, "No. No, you're not, are you?"

Draco shook his head fervently.

"Okay then, Draco," Hermione grinned at Draco's shocked look at the use of his first name, "What do you know about Muggle business practices?"

"Muggle business?" Draco asked. "Only what my father told me about the Malfoy holdings in the Muggle world, so not a whole lot."

"Well, I'll give you a bit of a Muggle economics and business crash course-"

"Crash course?!" Draco yelped.

"It's just an expression. I won't actually make you crash or crash into anything myself."

"Oh, okay."

"Anyways, Muggle crash course in economics and business. My parents are dentists, which are a version of Muggle healers dedicated to just the healing and care of mouths and teeth. Are you with me so far?"

Draco nodded.

"Alright, so they are dentists. They also own the building that they practice- do their healing- at. Which is basically like being the owner of Saint Mungo's, instead of just one medi-witch out of fifty, yeah?"

"I understand, I think," Draco said.

"So, they are healers, they own the building, and the entirety of the Granger and Granger Dentistry and Orthodontics Clinic. That means that, after paying for supplies, property taxes, and the other workers they employ, everything else comes home."

"So how much would that be… if it's alright to ask that," Draco added as an afterthought.

"Well, according to my calculations, my parents bring in about 22,000 galleons a year in profits. Of course, we do go on annual trips during summer holidays and sometimes at Christmas as well. That tends to pull down the profit margin a bit what with airfare, hotels, auto rentals, and food and souvenirs."

"Twenty-two thou- really? A Muggle healer can pull in that much in a year?"

"Well, it's the combined income for both my parents, and they're dentists. A surgeon could get an even higher income than my parents."

"I never realized… I think I'll use my investment portfolio to look into Muggle healing if the returns are as good as you say."

Hermione shrugged. "It's your money to do with as you wish. I get my inheritance to invest when I get my results this year. The boys know that and they are ruining my chances of getting perfect scores!"

Draco just shook his head at the direct change back to their original conversation. "Come on then. Let's go find Theo, Blaise, and Professor Cambridge. We'll get you put in my group and Theo can whip Potter and Weasley into shape to hopefully scrape them an A or EE for the class."

Hermione shoved her parchments into her bag and stood at the same time as Draco. "I hope you're right about him being willing to work with us to change groups."

Draco grinned and led her out of the library.


	15. Round Five Theme: Wilted

**A/N**

 **The Houses Competition**

 **Round five**

 **House: Hufflepuff**

 **Student: Year 7**

 **Category: Theme (2000-5000 Words)**

 **Prompt(s): Understanding - 3. [First Line] The flowers died three weeks ago.**

 **Word count: 1962 (Per Google Docs)**

 **Beta(s):Aya**

 **Wilted**

The flowers died three weeks ago. Dennis stared at the wilted blooms and couldn't muster the heart to throw them out and replace them. He knelt on the still fresh dirt of Colin's grave and shuddered as the sobs started once more.

"How am I supposed to go on, Colin? How do I live without my big brother to guide me?" He wrapped his arms around his torso as he read the epithet given to all of the Fallen Fifty, and the information provided by himself.

'Death is but the next great adventure. May you find peace on your travels.'

'Colin Michael Creevey'

'Beloved Brother, Son, Defender of Hogwarts'

'16 August 1981 - 2 May 1996'

Dennis dropped his head and let his tears fall unashamed.

"Colin?"

Dennis was startled and almost fell over at the hoarse voice coming from his right. He looked over and saw George Weasley standing before his own twins grave with the same anguished look on his face. "No… I'm Dennis," Dennis corrected softly.

George winced and apologetically responded, "Colin was a good kid, Dennis. You look just like him."

"But I'm not him, and I need him to be here." Dennis gulped back the sobs threatening to take over again. "I need my big brother!"

George walked over and laid a hand on Dennis' shoulder. "I know how you feel, Dennis. Fred is… was… my twin and my big brother."

Dennis broke down into bitter tears as he latched onto the older man. "I don't know how to live without him. Do you think it will ever get better, George?"

George wrapped his arm around Dennis' shaking shoulders and bowed his head as the tears started raining down his cheeks as well. "I don't know, Dennis. Until… until three weeks ago… I had never– I was never apart from– from Fred. He was my partner in crime, my best friend, my other half who always… always looked out for me. Now I have to try to… try to be what he was for me to Ron and Ginny. I don't know if I am strong enough to be all he was and be myself, too."

"Colin and me… we may have been two years apart, but we were almost as close as– as you and Fred. We have a baby sister, but she won't remember Colin because she is so young. How do I tell her that her big brother is actually one of two when Colin is already d–" Dennis choked. "Colin is already dead, and he never even got to be an adult."

George gently wrapped his other arm around the crying teen and rocked him slowly back and forth to calm his crying. "Colin may never get to be an adult and experience all that the world has to offer, but you can. So show your little sister pictures of her big brother, teach her his ideals and let her learn that she is from a family of brave, strong, courageous Gryffindors."

"If I- if I do that, then you have to– to do the same for R-ron and Ginny," Dennis mumbled, his face buried in George's chest.

George nodded and slowly released Dennis from his embrace as the teen's tears subsided. "We can make it a pact to be the best 'big' middle brothers we can be. We won't let our siblings forget that they have another brother that loves them, even if they can't be there for them in the living realm."

Dennis gave a watery smile as he nodded to George's proposal. "Would it be okay… can I… Can we meet up every now and then to check on each other?"

George smiled softly at the teen and nodded, "That would be nice, Dennis. I could write to you while you are at school as well to make sure you are doing fine and don't need any help."

Dennis beamed at George and nodded, "I would like that, George."

"Then it's settled." He turned to pay his respects to the fallen Creevey brother. Dennis did the same with Fred.

They both knelt at the other's sibling's grave and said a quiet prayer for the departed. They stood almost at the same time. Dennis walked back to say goodbye to his brother for the time being and to finally refresh the wilted flowers that he had left for him the day he had been buried.

George waited by the gates for Dennis when he saw what he was doing. "My mum comes out nearly every day to change out the flowers on Fred and Percy's graves."

"Percy died, too?" Dennis looked up at George as they closed the gates behind them.

"He died saving some First Years that were trying to get out of the castle. Don't get me wrong, I'm sad that Percy died, but Fred was my other half. Twins with magic… it's like we were the same person. With one soul, one magic."

"I think I can understand," Dennis said, looking up both sides of the street. "Lunch, George?"

"Yeah, let's head to the Three Broomsticks. I can use the Floo to get back to the shop from there. I left Angelina in charge while I visited with Fred." George absentmindedly swiped at his missing ear.

"Oh, I guess that means we'll be parting ways after eating then," Dennis mumbled, looking down to watch his steps.

George dropped his arm around the teen's shoulders again. "You are welcome to come to the shop if you want to, Dennis. I just thought you might want to go home after such an emotional upheaval as the one we shared in the… cemetery."

Dennis shook his head, "No one is home right now and I do not want to be alone. It's too… too soon to be alone after all that."

George squeezed his shoulder, then released him in time to open the door to the Three Broomsticks. "That is perfectly fine, Dennis. As I said, you are more than welcome to visit the shop with me while I make certain that Angelina and my customers haven't blown it to bits."

George turned to the counter and gave a grin to Madam Rosmerta. "Madam Rosmerta, my star shine, my flower, my beautiful–"

"Oh, hush, you big flirt," Madam Rosmerta cut him off. "What would you like to get so you can get out."

George smirked, "Three lunch specials and six butterbeers to go."

"Coming right up." She tapped the counter and the aforementioned order materialized. She put everything into a stasis bag and sent them on their way after George paid her.

"Come on then, Dennis." George dropped the required knuts into the bowl at the fireplace for the both of them to make it through the Floo. "The address is Red-Headed Menace Mansion."

Dennis looked at the older male incredulously. "Is it really?"

George stepped into the fire, dropped the Floo powder and stated clearly "Red-Headed Menace Mansion!"

He swirled away into the network as Dennis watched, gobsmacked. "I guess so. Huh."

He stepped into the fire and repeated the phrase carefully after dropping his own Floo powder, "Red-Headed Menace Mansion!"

He closed his eyes as he spun away through the network to stumble out into George's back. "Sorry, George. Spinning makes me nauseous."

"Just don't hurl on me, and we will be fine." George grabbed Dennis' hand and dragged him out of his personal apartment and into the bustling business of the shop. "Angie! Angelina!"

"What, George?" Angelina's exasperated voice carried over from the register area.

"How is it today?"

"Get over here and help check out so I can restock the shelves. We're out of Skivving Snackboxes, Fizzing Whizzbees, Pygmy Puffs, and Peruvian Darkness Powder. I have not had a single moment to go restock since you left this morning!"

"Lunch is waiting in the receiving room. Two butterbeers for you as well. Eat, and restock, then I'll go eat. Dennis! Want a job?"

Dennis stepped forward with trepidation. "A job?"

"Sure, watch me check out these next few customers, then you can take over."

Dennis watched with startled eyes as George powered through several transactions before literally being thrown to the masses to take over the check out process. "George? George! I am not ready for this!"

"You'll be fine," George called as he tried to get the restocking underway.

"You don't understand! I'm bad at maths!" Dennis wailed as he was hounded by a group of older students trying to get their pranks for the summer.

"What?" George turned back to the teen as he started to hyperventilate and sweat dotted his brow. "No no no. Dennis. Dennis, it is fine. You don't have to… you don't have to work the register. Hold on, just breathe for me. Okay? Breathe." He turned to the crowd and frowned. "Sonorous. Everyone out. Weasley's Wizard Wheezes is closing for lunch. Quietus."

The crowd thinned out and the door spells worked their magic as all items not bought and paid for flew out of pockets and hands to land on their appropriate shelves. As the last customer left, George cast a locking charm at the door and turned back to his still rattled charge.

"Ge-George?" Dennis stuttered, his eyes clenched tightly shut as he tried to breathe evenly.

"Yeah, Dennis, I'm here." George clasped Dennis' shoulder startling the teen into opening his eyes. "Do you often have panic attacks, Dennis?" George asked softly.

"More since… since Colin has been gone." He took a shuddering breath, held it for a few seconds, then released it slowly. He swiped his arm over his forehead to get rid of the sweat that had accumulated there in his stress induced panic attack.

"Did you have a ritual that you and Colin would do to keep you calm?"

"No, he just sat by me and let me calm down on my own."

"Fred would hold my hand and recite constellations with me when I would get overwhelmed… Do you think that would help?" George asked as he led Dennis back to his apartment where Angelina was still eating her lunch.

"Maybe. I'm not very good at Astronomy, though. Maybe it will help bring up my grade in the class."

George smiled as he pulled his wand and set up a planetarium he had been given by Fred in their younger years. "We will just grab our lunches and butterbeers and start star gazing to see where you are at, okay?"

Dennis smiled and nodded. He sat down to wait for George to return with their meals and looked up at the ceiling. "I never realized just how many stars there are in the sky," he whispered in awe.

"That would be because of light pollution, according to Hermione. The Muggle's have so many lights going during the night that the stars are not bright enough to outshine them. I used this planetarium to complete my assignments when I was a student."

"Can I- could I borrow it? Or could you tell me where to get one like it?" Dennis added.

George looked at the planetarium with fond eyes and nodded, "If you are very, very, extremely careful with it, I will let you borrow it for your classes."

Dennis grinned. "Thank you! This will be a great help."

George gave a bittersweet smile of his own as he gazed up at the image displayed on the ceiling. "Fred gave me this when we were allowed to shop for our own gifts in our first year at Hogwarts. I've had it since then."

Dennis nodded vigorously. "I have a book that Colin gave me his first year, too! I would never, ever let anything happen to it, so I understand the feeling you have for the planetarium."


	16. Round Six Drabble: Starting on a Good

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round Six  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Drabble (500 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 8. [Character] Professor Cuthbert Binns (Living days, not ghost days)  
** **Word count: 329 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya**

 **Starting on a Good Note**

Cuthbert Binns walked through the corridors reminiscing his student days. His fingers trailed along the walls between portraits while his footsteps echoed quietly. He glanced out a window and was startled to realize that it was nearing dusk. He snatched his hand from the wall and hurried to the Great Hall for the evening meal.

"Professor Binns!"

Cuthbert paused and turned towards the seventh year student making his way down the stairs towards him.

"Yes, Mr. Brocante?" Cuthbert asked as he paused for the student to catch up.

Earl Brocante leaned over to catch his breath as he reached Cuthbert's side. "Ah. Well…" He trailed off and peeked up at his Professor.

Cuthbert waited patiently for his student to speak.

"I heard you were opening up your classroom after class hours for student projects."

Cuthbert held out a hand, signaling Earl to walk with him to the Great Hall. "Yes, I was planning on it. I remember that the previous History of Magic Professor was doing the same thing before I came in to take his job this year."

"Yeah," Earl ruffled his hair and grinned sheepishly. "I just wanted to make sure. Some of the others thought you were going to do away with it when you became Professor. I can tell them not to worry at dinner."

Cuthbert smiled and nodded as they reached the Great Hall. "I'll give the Prefects a notice to put on each House Notice Board tomorrow as well. Have a nice supper, Mr. Brocante."

"Thanks, Professor Binns," Earl responded, He added cheekily under his breath as he passed Cuthbert to go to the Ravenclaw table, "I knew you would be a great Professor, Cuthbert. I'm glad you came back."

Cuthbert flushed and hurried to the Head table with an embarrassed smile adorning his lips. Walking the hallowed halls of his childhood was a blessing and a curse when you taught students whom a year or two prior were your friends and classmates.


	17. Round Six Short: Is That a Doll?

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round Six  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 7  
** **Category: Short (500-2000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 6. [First Line] As a child, he'd been told dolls were for girls.  
** **Word count: 1176 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya, Trish**

Is That a Doll?

As a child, he'd been told dolls were for girls. Dudley was constantly listening to his parents yell and berate his cousin while he himself played his games. He had years of practice carefully steering clear of requests for action figures and any other toys that remotely resemble dolls… so why was Harry playing with a doll when Mum and Dad told them both that they were not for boys?

"He shouldn't have that doll! Dad'll get him if he sees it," Dudley muttered to himself as he looked out the window and saw Harry sitting in the freshly laid dirt of the garden holding what appeared to be a doll of some sort.

Dudley set his cars down and tiptoed to the top of the stairs, listening for his parents. He didn't hear them, so he ran down and through the hall to the back door. He paused again, and, not hearing his dad say anything about running in the house, opened the door to go outside.

"Harry!" Dudley whisper-yelled at him.

Harry remained seated in the dirt with the doll in his hand. "What, Dudley?"

"Put that away before Mum and Dad catch you! Do you want to be locked up again?" He added the last bit much quieter as he knelt down next to Harry. "What _is_ it?"

Harry looked at his cousin with a shrug. "Missus Figg gave it to me and called it a wish granter. I think it's one of those weird voodoo dolls, though. She told me to put the hair of people who hurt me on it and wish that they leave me alone."

Dudley frowned at the creepy cloth and wax figure in Harry's hands. "Why would that batty old cat lady give you a voodoo doll, Harry?"

"I don't know. She's weird, but she lets me eat whatever I want when your parents send me to her… It's the only time I'm not hungry and she doesn't make me clean and do everything around the house like _they_ do."

"Yeah, but I've been sneaking you food! You aren't hungry _now_ , are you?" Dudley asked.

Harry shook his head in the negative, "I just got back from Missus Figg's yesterday after you and your parents came home from your trip. Dudley. You and I both know that the way your parents treat me is not normal."

"Yeah, but–"

"They didn't even tell me my name until I was six. _You_ didn't even know my name until I was six. You know that they wanted you to get the other kids to stay away from me in school. They want me isolated… I just don't know _why_." Harry contemplatively stared at the doll in his hands. "I've been here since I was a baby, but I don't belong here, Dudley."

"Would you just listen to me?! I _want_ you here! You help me! _You_ are the only one that cares if I understand in school. You make the teachers be nice to me when I have problems keeping up with our classmates, and I don't want– you can't– please don't leave me alone with them!" Dudley pleaded his cousin with wide eyes. "I swear I won't _ever_ be bad if you just stay with me!"

Both boys were startled when a soft golden glow surrounded Dudley and Harry after his words.

"Um, Dudley?" Harry's eyes widened as he glanced fearfully at the house.

"I don't know," Dudley responded to the unasked question. "We shouldn't tell Mum and Dad though. They hate 'freakish' things."

Harry winced but nodded. "I don't think it was me that did it though… I think it was you."

Dudley gulped then stood with determination in his stance. "I'm gonna ask Mum if I can take you to the park for 'Harry Hunting' so we can try and make the glow happen again without them seeing."

Harry hung his head at the mention of the school bully's favorite game. "Try not to let her call Mrs. Polkiss, okay? If Piers is there, it really _will_ be Harry Hunting."

"Fine, but put that doll away where they won't see it when you come through the house, okay? I don't want Dad to keep you here instead."

Harry shrugged and pushed the small doll into one of the over-large pockets on his hand-me-down shorts. He turned back to where he had been doing the weeding before he remembered the doll and got back to work while Dudley talked to his parents.

Ten minutes later, Harry and Dudley were making their way down to the community park. The other kids tended to leave them alone, so they had no problem finding a quiet portion of the park mostly hidden by trees.

"Okay, Dud. What do you think made the...glow?" Harry asked, looking cautiously through the trees to make sure they were alone.

"I don't know," Dudley admitted, running both hands through his hair. "Let me think for a minute."

Harry shrugged and sat with his back against one tree in their little hideaway and pulled the strange little doll out of his pocket again.

"Maybe it was something you said," Harry suggested, realizing that Dudley had nearly shouted his wish for Harry to stay with him and not leave him alone with his parents. "You said - no, you _swore_ you'd never be bad if I stayed with you."

"Well, yeah… You help me see that there is good and bad ways to be. You make me want to be good because – because Mum and Dad aren't and I don't want to be like them." Dudley sat next to Harry and bumped his shoulder softly. "I love you, cousin. I'm sorry if I don't tell you that enough. I just don't want you to leave me behind."

Harry blinked, then slid his arm behind Dudley and pulled him into a hug, "I love you, too, Dudley. I swear I won't leave you. I'll always protect you even if it means fighting your parents… or the world."

Both boys jerked as the golden glow from before happened, this time surrounding Harry.

"Oh," Harry whispered as he pulled back from Dudley and glanced around to make sure no one saw them.

"Is it 'cause we swore to each other?" Dudley asked in an awed voice.

"I think so…" Harry trailed off and looked at the doll one last time before shoving it in his pocket and standing. "Maybe Missus Figg can tell us what it means since she knows about voodoo dolls."

Dudley stood and stuck his hands in his pockets. "We'll have to take the long way to her house since Mum thinks I'm here beating you up with Polkiss and won't be back for another hour at least.

Harry nodded resolutely. "Let's find out what is _really_ going on with us, Dudley. I'm tired of the lies we've been force-fed by your parents."

"I agree," Dudley said as the two set off on the back way to the crazy cat lady's house for a conversation long overdue.


	18. Round Six Theme: Rituals and Mayhem

**A/N**

 **The Houses Competition**

 **Round Six**

 **House: Hufflepuff**

 **Student: Year 7**

 **Category: Theme (2000-5000 Words)**

 **Prompt(s): Power - 1. [Speech] "Care to tell me why you're bleeding?"**

 **Word count: 2061 (Per Google Docs)**

 **Beta(s):**

 **Rituals and Mayhem**

Tom was on a mission to complete a task he set for himself. He did not want to let anyone know about it until he completed it, just in case he made a fatal mistake and didn't survive the process.

He gathered his papers and quills and put everything into his bag. He did and stretched before picking up his bag.

"Don't wait up for me, Malfoy," Tom tossed over his shoulder as he got up to leave the common room. "I need to talk to Professor Slughorn and go to the library."

Abraxas frowned, but nodded his acquiescence. "If I am still up when you return, it will be because I am studying, and nothing to do with you skirting the rules of curfew for the ninth time this month," he snarked as he turned the page in his Potions text.

Tom made a face at Abraxas, then left. "Uppity pureblood ponce," he groused as he dug in his bag for the book that he wanted to discuss with his 'dear' Professor 'Sluggy'.

He paused in an alcove and calmed himself so his standard 'Perfect Prefect' persona in order to weedle more information on power enhancing rituals from his not-so-bright Head of House. Once he knew his mask was firmly in place, he continued on his journey to Professor Slughorn's office.

He knocked on the professor's door and waited for his overweight Head of House to answer him.

The door opened, and Professor Slughorn's eyes alighted on Tom, "Ah, Mr. Riddle. How can I help you tonight? Curfew is in just two short hours, you know."

"I know, Professor. I just had a few questions that came up when I was reading this book. I thought you might know the answers, or where to find them."

Abraxas was sitting quietly in his little corner of peace in the common room as he read through his Potions book to get ahead of the class schedule. He languidly flipped pages and sipped his fresh Earl Grey tea as other students made their ways to their bedrooms. He was waiting for Tom Riddle to get back from some errand or other that he did not want to tell Abraxas the details of. He did not believe for a moment that Tom only wanted to visit their Head of house and go to the library.

Curfew had passed twenty minutes ago and Tom was still not back. Being a Prefect afforded some liberties, but not on nights when the Prefect in question was not scheduled to patrol.

Tom Riddle was many things, but negligent was usually not on the top of anyone's list when detailing and describing the Slytherin heir, which was why Abraxas jumped to his feet, upsetting his tea, and stared in abject horror when said boy strolled straight into the common room with blood dripping out of both sleeves. His uniform shirt cuffs were soaked in crimson, and the boy's eyes were gleaming with insanity for one brief moment before Abraxas spoke.

"Care to tell me why you're bleeding?" Abraxas asked drolly as he tried to regain his pureblood composure at the sight of so much spilt blood.

Tom tilted his head to the side and blinked slowly, pale green eyes focussing in on the Malfoy heir. "Don't ask questions you don't want to know the answer to. So, that would be a no, Malfoy. I will _not_ tell you why I am bleeding because it is _none of your concern_." Tom then pulled his shoulders back and stalked past the frozen teen to his room.

"Tom! Tom!" Abraxas stumbled as he tried to keep the boy from locking him out of his room.

"What, Abraxas?" Tom sighed as he reached his door and glared at the other teen.

"Are you okay? You said you were going to see Professor Slughorn and go to the library. What _happened_? Did… whatever you were doing… did it go the way it was supposed to go? There are no… side effects of repercussions for mistakes?" Abraxas started to reach out to the shorter teen, then pulled his hands to his sides in fists.

Tom shrugged. "I won't know unless I wake up in the morning."

Abraxas blanched and stumbled forwards to lay his hands on Tom's shoulders. "What do you mean _unless_ you wake up?"

Tom shrugged Abraxas' hands off of him and took a step back to sit on his bed. "I took a calculated risk. I don't understand why you are so shocked about that."

"A calculated risk. _A CALCULATED RISK? Are you or of your mind?_ We are still in school, you ignorant, brainless-" Abraxas the his hands up. "Is it your blood, or are we going to find the desecrated remains of some plebeian Gryffindor that got on your bad side in the Great Hall come morning?"

Tom just turned his head and refused to answer.

"You will tell me, Tom, or so help me, I will step your shirt off myself to find the answer," Abraxas swore as he advanced on the seated teen.

"No!" Tom yelped and tried to shove Abraxas away.

Abraxas just grabbed both of Tom's wrists and starred impassively at the boy he had taken under his wing. "This is for your own good, Tom. Do not fight me on this."

He switched his grip to maintain control of Tom's hands in one of his own.

Tom struggled uselessly against the taller teen. "You can't!" He pulled with all his strength, but the ritual he had completed left him too weak to be able to resist. "Let me go, Abraxas, or I _will_ make you regret it."

Abraxas deftly unbuttoned Tom's shirt and pushed it off his shoulders. His eyes widened as he took in the runes carved into his chest and upper arms. "No… A Power Ritual? You did a _POWER RITUAL_?! Are you out of your mind? What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Tom turned his head away with a grimace. "I-"

"No! You don't get to talk right now! You had your chance and did not take it. Merlin, Tom. You could _die_ from this." Abraxas released Tom and backed away shaking his head, images of a broken blond man flashing through his mind. "Only the next twelve hours will tell."

Tom pulled his shirt back up over his shoulders. "I _told_ you that you would not want to know the answers to the questions you asked. I warned you not to touch me. I _will_ survive this, and you _will_ regret your actions."

Abraxas laughed a short bark of despair. "If you manage to survive this, I would welcome your retribution, Tom. My uncle _died_ using this very ritual."

Tom tilted his head to the left and surveyed his only real friend. "You have never spoken of him before."

"He wanted to be stronger than father to take over as Head of House Malfoy. It did not work. The ritual grants you strength and power, only if you survive the first twelve hours… Mother Magic does not approve of the ritual for the very reason that is siphon pet film elsewhere while draining the castor as well. Did Professor Slughorn tell you nothing about it?"

"Only that the practice had been discontinued due to adverse effects. He did not say those effects were the death of the castor. I will have words with him tomorrow over his withholding of information." Tom stupid and walked to his wardrobe to pull out a clean shirt.

Abraxas sighed. "At lay clean the excess blood off before you put on a new shirt. No need to ruin two shirts in one day."

Tom sneered and glared at the older teen, eyes flashing red in the dim light.

Abraxas blanched at the sight, "You did more than the power ritual. You did something else. Something worse."

Tom blinked and his normal light green eyes shone. "Maybe."

Abraxas turned on his heel and stalled to the door. "I won't stand vigil overt you to see if you survive, Tom. I'm done. I give up. I'm leaving, because I _cannot_ go through this again with someone I care about."

Tom clenched his fists and bit his lip to keep from responding.

"You don't even care, do you? Prince of Slytherin, indeed." Abraxas slammed his fist into the door, ranking it open.

"Abraxas!" Tom turned pleading eyes on the Malfoy heir.

"No, Tom. I won't watch you die like I did my Uncle Ferdinand. This ritual may grant you power if you survive, but it is a corrupting power. One that will rot your soul and kill your mind."

Abraxas stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him. He leaned against the wall and dropped his head into his hands. "My saving grace is that if you do survive you won't remember me abandoning you at this time. But that ritual… it's nothing but bad news and mayhem for the castor. There is a reason it was discontinued and removed from the curriculum."

Abraxas pushed off of the wall and headed to his room. Tomorrow would come son enough, and with it, the results of that disastrous ritual that Tom so foolishly attempted. "No telling what the ritual, combined with whatever he did before it will produce," Abraxas muttered as he disengaged his locking spells on his door and stepped into his safe haven.

Tom stared blankly at the closed door, not quite processing that, yes, Abraxas did just leave him after that rousing speech about what could happen to him.

"Unbelievable," Tom hissed, ire rising as he realized that his one friend- the one person he could count on- had left him to deal with the repercussions of his actions alone.

Tom sighed and striped off his blood soaked shirt and turned his wand on himself to begin the process of cleaning and casting minor healing charms to keep from reopening the wounds. Once he was finished tending to the runes carved into his body, he stood in front of the mirror in his wardrobe and surveyed the damage he had done to his body. "I guess I could consider myself lucky," he muttered, as his eyes caught on a ring and journal tucked away in the bottom of the wardrobe with several misdirection and security spells, "that Abraxas did not catch sight of my Horcruxes in his haste to leave me to my own devices."

He grabbed the book, but left the ring. "Power Corrupts, and Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely. I won't allow that stupid line to rule me in fear. I will be stronger and more powerful than anyone else… I have to be so that no one will ever try to hurt me again."

Abraxas shuddered in his room as he felt a Dark Power sweep down Power from entering his solace. "No, Tom. I will not be seduced by the Power you claim as your own. I refuse to be another pawn in your chess game. I am a Malfoy. We are not expendable."

He settled comfortably onto his bed with his legs folded, with his hands palm up on his knees. He closed his eyes and centered himself to draw his own Power up to try to reinforce his barriers and not be pulled under the Dark Power's sway.

He focussed on his Core and let himself be drawn into the flow of his own Magic as he meditated.

After an hour, the rush of the Dark Power receded. Abraxas had fallen asleep during his meditation, but managed to maintain his barriers despite that fact.

The next morning, Abraxas made his way cautiously to the Great Hall after the majority of the House had already left. His eyes swept over the other three House tables before taking in his own. He took a steadying breath when he saw Tom sitting at his normal spot, the seat next to him open and waiting for Abraxas to get there.

"Good morning, Tom," Abraxas said quietly as he sat.

"Good morning, Abraxas. Is something wrong?"

"No… Everything is fine."

Tom cocked his head to the side and shrugged. "If you say so. Eat fast. The Professors apparently want to hold another meeting with the Prefects and we don't want to be late."

Abraxas just nodded mutely and set about filling his plate.


	19. Round Seven Drabble:Shall We Dance?

**A/N** **The Houses Competition**

 **Round Seven**

 **House: Hufflepuff**

 **Student: Year 7**

 **Category: Drabble (500 Words)**

 **Prompt(s): 8. [Pairing] Harry/Luna**

 **Word count: 222 (Per Google Docs)**

 **Beta(s): Aya**

 **Shall We Dance?**

Harry watched his feet carefully to avoid stepping on Luna while they danced.

"Don't worry, Harry," Luna said softly, "We practiced enough that I think I can move my foot before you actually get close to stepping on it."

Harry looked up sheepishly, "Sorry, Luna. I get nervous."

Luna laughed and took the opportunity to spin Harry instead of spinning herself.

Harry let out a bark of startled laughter, then finally loosened up to dance with the tiny blonde without reservations.

Luna grinned, and let herself be spun out properly before the Weird Sisters got up on stage. They got the Yule Ball hopping with some more upbeat music than the stuffy ballroom dances they had been subjected to for the first twenty minutes after eating.

"I love this song!" Luna shouted as the floor filled with rambunctious students.

Harry shook his head, "I've never even heard it before!"

Luna looked at him with mock horror, "Never?"

Harry shrugged. "Muggle-raised, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. We'll just need to educate you then!" Luna smiled and swayed back and forth to the beat.

"Awww, more homework?" Harry whined with a grin.

"Yep!" Luna grabbed his hands and moved him to the beat. "Now keep up! The first lesson is now!"

Harry shook his head in amusement and followed the blonde's lead. "As you wish, Luna."


	20. Round Seven Short: Missing Information

**A/N**

 **The Houses Competition**

 **Round Seven**

 **House: Hufflepuff**

 **Student: Year 7**

 **Category: Short(500-2000 Words)**

 **Prompt(s): 3. [Speech] "You have no power over me." "You sure about that?"**

 **Word count: 1517 (Per Google Docs)**

 **Beta(s): Aya**

 **Notes: Jareth belongs to Labyrinth. * denotes direct quote**

 **Missing Information**

Hermione sat under the Whomping Willow with a book in her hands. She and the tree had come to an agreement after she saved it from Death Eaters casting Fiendfire at it in the Final Battle.

She hunched over, her eyes roving over the pages faster as she got to her favorite part.

"Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City to take back the child you have stolen, for my will is as strong as yours and my kingdom as great."* She didn't even realize she was voicing Sarah's lines softly as she read, she was so engrossed in her novel. "You have no power over me!"*

"You sure about that?"

The response startled her so much that when Hermione jumped up, the Whomping Willow swung its' limbs out violently to knock away any intruders.

"Who's there?" Hermione demanded, wand drawn and book forgotten on the ground.

"You're not Sarah," a honey-rich voice grumbled. The owner of said voice stepped seemingly out of nowhere in front of her. He nonchalantly waved a hand causing the Whomping Willow to freeze in its' tracks. His mismatched eyes danced with mischief, his hair was blond and a multitude of lengths, but what stopped Hermione from throwing a curse at her visitor was his slightly fanged teeth.

"Why would I be Sarah?" Hermione snapped. "For all you know, I'm Alice, or Heather, or Gertrude!"

The man sighed as he materialized a glass ball in his hand. "You certainly sound like her."

"I'm not!" Hermione stomped her foot.

"Obviously, silly girl. You are a witch, and my Sarah was a non-magical human." The man played with the ball he conjured, sliding it over and under his hands without a thought. "It is possible that you are related to her, though."

"My mother's name is Jean. Her mother's name was Samantha."

"What of the father?"

"My father's name is Michael. His mother's name-"

"Your mother's father, girl."

Hermione glared at the intruder and bit out, "My mother's father was Toby. Toby Mathias Parker."

The fanged man grinned. "My little Toby."

"Excuse me? Grandfather Toby was human! A muggle with no magic!" Hermione aimed her wand at the man again determined to fire off a curse.

"He was a wished away child. One that I watched over until my kingdom had some problems that I couldn't neglect any longer."

"Wha- are you- You can't be serious!" Hermione cast a fearful glance at her forgotten book. "Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered…" Fearful caramel eyes took in the man before her. "Jareth, the Goblin King."

The man nodded with a haughty smirk in her direction. "Now you're getting it, girl."

Hermione took a step back and felt her spine connect softly with the tree. She slashed her wand, breaking the freeze charm Jareth had put over the Whomping Willow, and slammed the knot at her heel to open the path beneath her feet. She slid into the hidden trail and bolted to the Shrieking Shack without a backward glance. When she hit the Apparition Barrier, she twisted on her heel and landed in the Receiving Hall at Gringotts Bank.

She glanced around and then headed to the only open teller. "I need to speak with Director Ragnok."

"The Director does not have time for Thieves," the teller snarled.

"I want to speak with him now before the Ki-" she cut off. "Toby Mathias Parker is my grandfather. I need to know if there is anything he left for me here."

The Goblin glared down at Hermione and held out his hand. "Hand."

Hermione reached up to put her hand in his grasp. The goblin turned her hand and pricked her ring finger to allow a drop of blood to fall on the parchment on his desk. He released her immediately when the parchment flared green.

He jumped down and left Hermione standing in confusion for several minutes before he came around to the front. "Follow me."

Hermione followed the goblin in trepidation as he led her to the Director's Office. Her eyes trying to take in her entire surroundings as she kept pace with the surprisingly agile creature leading her.

"Director Ragnok," the goblin spoke as they halted in front of an open door. "The heir is here."

Hermione turned sharply to address the goblin, but he had already left her in front of the Director's office.

"Enter, Heir."

"Director Ragnok," Hermione began, only to be cut off.

"Ah ah ah, Granddaughter of Toby." Hermione froze as two hands settled on her shoulders.

"Director Ragnok, thank you for informing me of her whereabouts. We will be leaving now." Blond hair came into Hermione's peripheral vision. "I have much to tell the lost girl."

Hermione tried to pull away from the Goblin King, but he was too strong for her to break his grasp. "Let me go," she snarled in barely repressed hysteria.

"Hmmm," Jareth pretended to think for a moment. "No. I need to speak with you. This is the easiest way." He wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind and chuckled. "Deep breath."

Hermione clenched her fists and closed her eyes as she felt the Goblin King's magic take them from Gringotts.

She stumbled when they landed and threw her arms out to steady herself. She took in her surroundings in confusion. "How do you know where my parents live?"

Jareth shrugged and walked up to the back door of her childhood home. "I followed the pull of blood to blood."

Hermione blanched and rushed to stop Jareth from entering the house. "You can't go in there!"

"You are going to stop me? A mere witch of barely nineteen summers?" Jareth scoffed.

"No, but my parents are non-magical. You can't just barge into their home… It's rude."

Jareth grumbled, but let the witch take the lead.

"Mum? Dad?" Hermione called as she used her house key to let them in. "Are you home?"

"In the family room, Hermione," Jean called out.

Hermione led Jareth to the family room. "Wait here," she whispered. "Mum, I brought someone to meet you."

"A boyfriend?" Jean asked before she saw Jareth.

"Er, no. Definitely not. Mum, did Grandpa Toby ever mention having strange dreams as a child? Or tell you stories about a… Labyrinth?" Hermione twisted her hands where she stood in the doorway, blocking Jareth from making his entrance.

Jean's eyes went wide and she paled drastically. "How did you know that? Did you use that - that mind magic stuff on us again?"

"Mum, no! I wouldn't!" Hermione took a few steps forward to placate her mother, and Jareth used that as his chance to move into the room.

"Hello, Jean. You look startlingly like my Toby." Jareth smiled, showing his slightly fanged teeth.

Jean growled and launched to her feet. "Jareth," she hissed. "You have no power over me, and you most certainly have no power over my daughter! What are you doing on the mortal plane?"

Jareth merely crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Technically, if I'm using the correct phrases, you are wrong. Toby did spend an extended length of time in my Kingdom, imbuing himself with magic when his not-so-nice sister wished him away to me. Given that, I am surprised you didn't have a magical core strong enough to get you sent to Hogwash."

"Hogwarts," Hermione muttered.

"Whatever," Jareth replied.

"Wait." Hermione tilted her head. "My magic is Goblin in nature?"

"Not quite, but it is what turned your mundane family into a new line of magic users."

"Are you here to reclaim my family for the Goblin Kingdom?" Jean cut in, "Or are you merely here to check on us?"

Jareth returned his attention to the elder Granger female. "Hermione was reading a book about your Aunt Sarah and her selfish wish to rid herself of Toby. I merely wanted to know if she realized it was a family history, not just a fantasy novel."

Hermione frowned. "In the book, the girl's name was Samantha and the boy was Tommy."

"Changed to protect them, and me."

"So, does this mean that you are going to be keeping tabs on me now?" Hermione asked the Goblin King.

"Perhaps. I do have other things to do, you know." Jareth materialized one of his glass orbs and glanced at it. "Ah, and here's one of them now. Ludo is trying to destroy my throne room again. I will see you soon, Hermione."

"Wait— Hermione started, but cut off as Jareth twisted and shifted into a barn owl and vanished into thin air. "Mum?"

"I'll start looking into it, Hermione. I had no idea Father was speaking the truth when he told me about Goblins and such when I was a child. We might have been a bit better off when your magic first showed itself if I had remembered the stories."

Hermione shrugged. "I'll start researching once I get back to Hogwarts, as well as ask the Professors."

Hermione hugged her mother, then left. She had some facts to check.


	21. Round 8 Theme: The Truth in the Lie

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round Eight  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 2  
** **Category: Theme (2000-5000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): Redemption 4. [Speech] "Let's find out exactly how deep your betrayal runs."  
** **5\. [First Line] Seeking shelter from the storm was the first of many mistakes that day.  
** **Word count: 3561 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya, Sasha, Pixileanin**

 **Notes: AU, Manipulative!Dumbledore, Good!Peter, Protective!Sirius, BOLDED FONT = memory/flashback**

 **The Truth Behind the Lie**

Seeking shelter from the storm was the first of many mistakes made that day. Forgoing any sort of appearance-altering potions or spells was the second. Forgetting to be vigilant was the third and the worst mistake of all.

"PETER!" An enraged voice came from his right. Before he had a chance to even tilt his head in the direction of the voice, he was hit with a spell and knocked unconscious.

An indeterminable amount of time later, Peter jolted to wakefulness. He twitched and realized that he was shackled to a chair with magic suppressors. "Oh, no. Oh, Merlin, he has me…" Peter muttered as his eyes darted back and forth trying to see if the Dark Lord had a normal interrogation planned, or if this was just to be a torture session because He was bored.

"Awake, _Wormtail_?"

"Si-Siri?" Peter spluttered, relief flooding his voice as he continues, "Sirius, what is going on? Why am I here? What happened? Are James, Lily, and Harry alright?" Peter shifted and knocked his wrist against the arm of his chair with a wince.

Sirius snarled and stalked in front of the bound man. His one-time friend- before he realized that the rat animagus had betrayed his brother in all but name, causing the death of him and his wife, and leaving Harry an orphan.

"You dare," Sirius whispered. His voice rose until he was shouting, "You dare to ask about those you have _betrayed_! I knew you were no good, rat!"

"Sirius, please!" Peter yelped, "I don't know what you are talking about. I don't—"

Sirius cut him off with a slash of his hand, "Let's find out how deep your betrayal runs. I went into the destroyed home that should have been under _Fidelius_ to find Harry. Do you know an accomplished _Legilimens_? I am okay at the art, but am not a Master by any means. Hopefully, I won't unhinge your mind before I can find my answers."

"Sirius, no–" Peter froze when Sirius hit him with a _Petrificus Totalus_ and held his wand between his eyes.

" _Legilimens_ ," Sirius snapped sharply, delving into the disarray that made up Peter's mind.

What he saw sickened him beyond belief. He saw evidence of multiple _Obliviates_ , remnants of the _Imperius_ _Curse_ , and an overall blanket of _Compulsion_ _Charms_. The fractured memories and overall haziness of alterations caused by the multitude of _Obliviates_ Peter had been subjected to made Sirius nauseous. It boggled his mind and he wasn't sure that this Peter, cowering in front of him in his chair while Sirius brutalized his mind even more, was even the same person as the one he had protected on the first Hogwarts Express ride to start school as First Years.

Sirius backed out of Peter's mind slowly, letting his magic taste the warping mind magics in an attempt to be able to identify it if he came in contact with it again. He released the body bind and stepped back to lean against a table. He waved his wand negligently and released the cuffs from Peter's wrists.

Peter shook his head, tears falling from his eyes as he tried to clear the cloudiness from his mind. He couldn't remember his actions leading up to the destruction of the Potter home. He couldn't remember a lot of things. He ran his hands agitatedly through his still damp hair, trying to put together his fragmented memories to come to a conclusion…

"Was I the reason they died, Siri? Was I the one that let James and Lily die? Is Harry okay? I didn't let him die, too, did I?" His face was a picture of anguish as he looked up at his oldest living friend. His blue eyes closed and he bowed his head as silent sobs forced their way up.

Sirius shook his head. "No, Peter," he said softly, "it wasn't your fault. Your parents are from lesser Houses, correct?"

Peter nodded slowly, hands clasped in his lap as he stared unseeingly at the floor, his sobs tapering off to steady tears. "Mum was the second daughter, and Father wasn't in line to collect the House Seat in the Wizengamot unless three others died without Heirs. Why?"

"Were you ever taught _Occlumency_ , Peter?"

"No, I didn't need to be. I'm a younger son of a younger son. The closest I came was the meditation we did to become _Animagi_ , and I was _still_ the last to master that." Peter smoothed his robes down before looking up at the Black Heir.

"You were taught." It was a statement and an accusation. "You didn't teach me. Remus didn't need it because you can't use _Legilimency_ on a werewolf, and James knew it because he was the Potter Heir! I was the weak link and you didn't help me!"

Black sighed, "I know, Peter. I'm sorry that I failed you in this, but I—"

"'But' nothing! You and James both left me as the weakest link and now he and Lily have paid the price for that oversight! I can _feel_ that my mind is not what it should be! How can I even begin to ask for help to put myself back together, when the first Mind Healer appointment would see me facing time in Azkaban for accessory to murder, or worse, the _Kiss_?! I'm not from the main branch! The Head of the Pettigrew family won't protect me from that fate, Sirius!"

Sirius blanched as the implications finally hit home. "We will have to plan. I will need to get Harry away from wherever the Headmaster had him taken as well."

Peter paled drastically. "The Headmaster has Harry?" His coarse whisper preceded his dead faint, which caused him to slip to the floor.

"Peter? Peter?!" Sirius cursed under his breath and grabbed his passed out friend to _Apparate_ them both to a safe house that no one but the main branch of the Blacks knew about.

* * *

Two hours later, Peter was still trapped within his own mind, reliving nightmares...and breaking through to the truth of his memories. Time seemed to stand still as he watched a memory as a bystander in his own mind.

 **Peter was startled when he saw himself waiting at the gargoyle entrance to the Headmaster's Office, trying to guess the password to get in. Finally, he decided to cheat** **at** **the game and went to hide in an alcove and transformed into a rat to sneak past the door guardian. He made his way up to the Headmaster's door and transformed back into his normal form now that there were no portraits to catch him.**

 **He started to knock on the door** **but paused when he heard Snivellus pleading with Dumbledore.**

 **"Headmaster! Please! You have to save her! You have to _protect_ her!" Snape's voice rang through the door.**

 **"And what of her child and husband, Severus? Would you have me protect them, too?" Dumbledore's sharp reply lashed out.**

 **"I don't care! You just have to save Lily!" Snape responded, desperation apparent.**

 **"I want a Vow, Severus. For you to become a spy in Voldemort's ranks." His voice seemed to be teeming with smug satisfaction.**

 **"A Vow?" Severus whimpered. "A Vow for Lily's life?"**

 **"Yes. A Vow for–" Dumbledore cut off and the door swung in to reveal Peter on the threshold. "Peter," Dumbledore said flatly. " _Obliviate_."**

Peter watched as another memory slide into place around him. This one taking place even earlier than the last.

 **Memory Peter adjusted his robes over his shoulders and brushed his hand over the Gryffindor Crest on his chest. Watcher Peter glanced at the Daily Prophet on the table as Memory Peter stood to leave the Great Hall. According to the date on the paper, there were only two months left of his Seventh Year.**

 **Watcher Peter followed Memory Peter to the Headmaster's Office again and waited as the gargoyle let him in without a password this time.**

 **Before he could knock on the door, Dumbledore spoke from within, "Come in, Mr. Pettigrew."**

 **He pushed open the door and walked in. "You wanted to see me, Professor Dumbledore?" Peter asked softly as he stood awkwardly next to the only chair in front of the Headmaster's desk.**

 **"Yes, my boy. Have a seat." Dumbledore waved at the chair that Peter stood next to. Watcher Peter took up a post near the door to survey the whole office for clues as to what was coming next.**

 **"Now, my boy. It has come to my attention that one of the Mauraders is not what he appears." Dumbledore's blue eyes twinkled creepily at the seventeen-year-old sitting in front of him.**

 **Peter clenched his hands in his lap, then released them with a calming breath. "I don't know what you are talking about, Professor. I'm sure you could talk to James, Sirius, or Remus and they would tell you the same. We are just a group of friends that like to play pranks to keep everyone's spirits up, what with the war taking its toll."**

 **Peter rubbed his left forearm in confusion as it started to burn. He pulled his sleeve up but didn't see anything to cause the burning sensation. "Professor, I think I need to go see Madame Pomfrey." He pulled his sleeve back down and cradled his arm to his chest, but not before Watcher Peter saw the telltale flash of a _disillusionment_ _charm_ hit his arm from the Headmaster's wand.**

 **"Oh, Peter," Dumbledore sighed, causing both Peter's heads to snap to the old man's face- one in confusion, and the other in suspicion. " _Obliviate_."**

 **This time, the memory didn't end though as the Headmaster continued speaking with his wand trained on the barely legal wizard in front of him, "You will answer every summons to Voldemort's side. You will not remember any of your visits to him unless I pull the memories from your mind myself. You will continue on as you have been- by going to class and playing pranks with the _Marauders_ ," Dumbledore sneered out the name of his group of friends. When he finished speaking, Peter slumped sideways in his chair and the memory ended.**

Peter tried to keep up as more and more _Obliviated_ memories popped up in their unedited forms.

He watched as he tortured Light Wizards, Muggles, _children_ …

He watched meeting after meeting after meeting with the Headmaster, the earliest of which happened in his very first year, just after the start of classes. He shook his head morosely as his younger self gushed over having a friend for the first time. He told the Headmaster how the Black Heir had saved him on the train from bullying older students that didn't like Firsties with questions.

The Professor knew about the group becoming _Animagi_ to help Remus with his furry little problem. He knew that they focussed their ire with the Slytherins on one of their own Yearmates just because the boy was friends with Lily Evans. He _encouraged_ their 'rivalry' which was really just bullying at its worst. He saw Dumbledore cast spells at their group to up the animosity to push the Slytherin into the arms of the Dark Lord. He twisted the feelings of friendship that Peter had started to nurture with Snape into feelings of loathing and hatred.

"It was Dumbledore's fault that those tragedies happened!" Peter snarled to himself, finally pulling himself to the real world once more. He bolted upright and swore again, "It's Dumbledore's fault, and I will make it right!"

"Peter?" Sirius asked cautiously. "It's Dumbledore's fault'?"

"We need to get Harry. Now!" Peter pushed himself off the bed he had been sitting on. "You said you gave him to that manipulator. He's going to hurt him like he hurt me. He'll curse our Prongslet, Siri. He'll turn him into another me, or worse, he'll hurt him like Snape."

Sirius paused in his movements. "What do you mean, hurt him like you? Like Snape?"

"Dumbledore has been _Obliviating_ me since our First Year, Siri. Do you remember when we first started school? You saved me and Snape from the bullying Upper Years by claiming that we were both under Black protection. It wasn't James and Remus that were with us on the train, Siri. It was Severus. He's been manipulating us since the beginning. He hit us with repeated compulsion and loyalty potions in our food, and charms on me specifically. He didn't need to worry about Remus turning on him because Remus was so relieved to be able to attend school at all."

"But why would he do that?" Sirius asked as he walked with Peter to the front of the house. They would have to leave the wards to be able to _apparate_.

"Because he turned Tom Riddle into Voldemort and wants to be the hero for defeating his self-made Dark Lord. I remember everything, Siri. Voldemort's mind is nearly as broken as mine, but he has had longer to put his memories back in the right order. The Dark Lord isn't Voldemort… It's Dumbledore." Peter turned and put a hand on Sirius shoulder.

"Don't run off again. Don't try to take him on your own. You won't survive. The Prophecy might be a fake, but now that Voldemort and Dumbledore both put stock into it… It will be self-fulfilling. Lily was the one to defeat Voldemort. If, if, the prophecy is real, we will need to take Harry to the Hall of Prophecies to get the orb and find out the true wording. Something tells me the the Seer knew about Dumbledore and sent a false Prophet in place of themselves to give a modified prophecy."

Sirius stood with his mouth open in shock. "How in the he–"

Peter shrugged. "I think it's my true personality finally emerging. I wasn't always a scared little mouse, you know. I came up with just as many pranks as you did. You just took the credit for them when Dumbledore would mess with our minds using potions."

Sirius frowned. "Potions should have had no effect on me due to wearing the Heir ring."

"Yes, but you forget, Dumbledore is _also_ an Alchemist. His potions weren't just potions." Peter grasped Sirius' arm. "Use the pull of the Godfather ritual and take us to Harry."

Sirius nodded once and focussed on the rope of magic that tied him to his godson then a moment later both men disappeared with a crack.

Peter nearly went to his knees when he felt the malevolent wards around the house they appeared in front of. "Siri- Siri, we have to get him out _now_!" A cold sweat built up on his skin as he shuddered in revulsion. "Dumbledore used _Dark_ wards on this property. Please, Siri–"

Sirius ran a hand over the side of Peter's face. "I'll get him, Peter. Hold on." Sirius pulled his wand and used every counter ward in his extensive knowledge from the vaunted Black Family Library to create a rift in the ward scheme around the house and stepped through just before the rift closed to keep him out. He walked up to the front door and banged on it with his fist.

"Alright, alright," a shrill voice came from inside. "I'm coming. Quit banging on the door." The door whipped open and Sirius almost hit the horse-faced woman in the doorway. Her eyes widened and she tried to slam the door shut again.

"Oh, hello, Tuney," Sirius savagely said as he shouldered his way into the house. "Give me my godson, and I'll be on my way."

"Pet, who was at the door," Vernon called from the living room where he was entertaining their son with the television.

"Get out of my house, you _freak_!" Petunia Dursley shrieked as she tried to push the much larger male out of the door.

"Petunia!" Vernon roared as he set his son into his playpen before stomping his way into the hall.

"It's fine, Vernon. This _freak_ was just leaving," Petunia promised as she continued to attempt to push Sirius out of the house.

" _Not without Harry_!" Sirius snarled as he whipped his wand out and Incarcerated both Muggle adults. "Where. Is. He?" Each word was enunciated with barely repressed rage.

Vernon's eyes darted to a tiny door beneath the stairs and Sirius saw red. He slammed both Muggles into the wall making them fall to the floor in a heap as he stalked to the door.

"Hare-Bear?" Sirius asked as he knelt by the closed door. His hand shook as he heard a reply from inside.

"Pa'foo'?" The door opened and Sirius bit back a gasp as he saw the battered face of his beloved godson. "Pa'foo? Where Mummy?"

Sirius reached into the cupboard and pulled Harry into his arms. He cradled the toddler close to him as Harry reached his small arms up around his neck. "I am so sorry, Harry. Mummy and Daddy went away. They can't come back. You are gonna stay with Padfoot and Wormy, okay?"

"No Mummy and Daddy?" Harry whispered.

"No, Prongslet. Mummy and Daddy were hurt by a bad man. They can't come back." Sirius stood and walked to the entrance to the home, just before he stepped over the prone bodies of Harry's maternal Aunt and Uncle Sirius glanced into the living room. He saw an ugly vase sitting on the mantel. His eyes widened and he looked down at his godson nestled in his arms. "That _monster_. Hold tight, Prongslet. I'm gonna do something not-smart, and we'll have to leave fast, okay?"

Harry nodded and stung his head in the crook of Sirius' neck. "'Kay."

Sirius took his wand and floated the Muggle child over to his parents then cast a shield spell over the Muggles in the hall. He sent a _Patronus_ messenger to Peter, telling him to go back to the safe house, then turned his wand and blasted the vase to dust. The second the spell connected with the vase he turned and _apparated_ back to the safe house just as Peter arrived.

"Inside the wards, quickly." Sirius ushered his friend and his godson through the wards and brought them up to full strength.

* * *

A few weeks later, after the three had settled into a routine, Peter brought up Severus in conversation once again.

Sirius had just settle Harry down for a nap and was getting a couple of elves to organize a shopping trip to get some essentials that they were missing.

"Siri," Peter started, then stopped as he wrung his hands. "Siri, I think we should talk to Severus."

"Why?"

"Well… he's a _Master_ _Legilimens_ …" Peter trailed off, then started again, "I think he knows more about what is going on in the manipulator's mind than we do, and he can help us."

Sirius frowned, then sighed. "I'll send the owl to get him to meet us at a neutral location."

"Thank you."

* * *

Severus agreed to a meeting three days later. He was wary and hyper-observant of his surroundings.

When he saw Peter at Sirius' side, holding Harry in his arms, he blanched. The boy was quiet, but his bright green eyes were those of his first friend. He aborted his move to reach for the child, but both of the other wizards caught his movement.

"Do you… want to hold him?" Peter hesitantly asked.

"N-no," Severus shook his head and focussed on the men before him. "What did you want to speak to me about? I have lesson plans to write."

Peter glanced at Sirius, then stepped forward. "I remember things. Things that don't make sense, but I think you would understand."

Severus froze and watched the shorter man closely, "You broke through the spells… you _know_ what he is capable of."

Peter nodded. "We need your help. We can't teach Harry on our own, and he's not healing properly. This scar," he pushed Harry's hair up on his forehead revealing an angry red scar, "it's not healing."

Severus crossed his arms as he felt the urge to reach for the child again. "I won't stand for your pranks and attacks on my person if I help you," he said softly.

Peter took another step closer and rested a hand on Severus' shoulder while holding Harry securely in the other, "I know that nothing could make you forgive or redeem me for forgetting our friendship, but I do hope that one day, we could start on the road to-"

"You don't need my redemption, Peter. I knew you weren't a true follower of Voldemort, and Dumbledore was the one to start every single one of us down this path. You are still my friend… We just need a bit of time to figure out how to progress from here. First, let's get the child healed up. Then we'll work on a plan to expose Dumbledore for the fraud he is. Luckily, I worded the Vow he made me swear to protect Harry, not to serve him in his schemes."

The three men shook hands, then Peter took Harry, and Sirius took Severus back to the safe house. It was about time they started on the Great Manipulator's downfall. Redemption would not be an option for Dumbledore, even if Sirius believed that the dark wizard at his side, and his best friend on the other, fully deserved it.


	22. Round 9 Short: From the Ground Up

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round Nine  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 2  
** **Category: Short (500-2000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 4. [Word] Undeniable  
** **Word count: 906 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya, Sasha, Magi**

 **Notes:** **{Song fic: NO LYRICS IN STORY… written while listening to** _ **From the Ground Up**_ **by Dan + Shay}  
** **{* denotes a direct quote from the movie** _ **Corpse Bride**_ **}**

 **From the Ground Up**

She looked around the house she had been given by her grandparents in their will. There were so many pictures of the happy couple they were before the war. Knick-knacks and mementos of their life were scattered throughout the home. She paused in front of a painting that hadn't had the spell activated to animate the occupants. They were in their wedding robes, and her grandparents were practically radiant with the undeniable love shining from their eyes. Her gaze strayed to a table painted in the background of the photo and the stack of letters with her grandmother's writing flourished across the front of it.

She turned to look at her daughter and husband, curled up and asleep on the couch behind her. Her two-year-old had been so excited that she had worn herself out. Smiling softly at the two, she gently shook her head. She walked over quietly and kissed them both on the forehead before making her way to the stairs.

She looked in the first room at the top of the stairs. She sucked in a breath and teared up. This was the room her mother had grown up in. Pale pink walls, white furniture, purple bedding. Her gaze fell on a worn-out rabbit on the pillow. She took the remaining steps over to the toy and picked it up gingerly, folding her arms around the soft fur. She left the room, grazing the wall with her fingertips to the next room down.

She walked into the master bedroom– her grandparents' room– and stood still, taking in the scene before her. She could see an almost afterimage of the pair dancing around the bed if she closed her eyes. She swayed slightly to half-imagined music and spun around to start the steps of a waltz, holding the rabbit in the standard box formation. She took light steps, spun on the ball of her foot and extended her left arm out, dropping the rabbit's arm in the process. She opened her eyes with a smile when she felt her hand be taken by her husband. She set the rabbit on the dresser as he spun her back into his arms.

She closed her eyes and remembered back a few years to her own marriage. Her vows on the tip of her tongue, almost as if she needed to reaffirm them with her husband. She opened her eyes and saw that he must have felt the same urge. They moved in time to the imagined song. She spun out, almost able to feel her wedding robes swish around her ankles.

They slowed and came to a stop. She looked around for their daughter and he smiled. He took her hand and guided her back into the nursery where their daughter was sleeping peacefully in the crib her mother used. She stood in the doorway, her husband's arms around her waist.

She placed one of his hands on her stomach and pressed down. She looked over her shoulder at him as he froze. She twisted in his arms and kissed his nose. He shook his head and pressed his hand against her abdomen with the question dying on his lips as she nodded. Their daughter would have a sibling in the coming months.

Her husband laughed joyously and picked her up, spinning her in his arms. Their daughter woke up and watched them giggling through the crib. They separated and she went to pick up their daughter.

Several decades passed from those first days in the house her grandparents built. Their daughter was grown with children of her own. Their son was working on getting masteries in both Healing and Potions to get a job at Hogwarts. Even with the years and years they had been together, they still loved each other. Small fights were smoothed over with good food and real conversations. They never stopped dancing around when they got the urge. The pictures of her grandparents had been systematically replaced with pictures of their lives.

* * *

After sixty-five years together, they renewed their vows with their whole family standing witness. Parents, children, grandchildren, and one great-grandchild, as well as friends and their family, were in attendance. Tears were shed as they used their favorite movie, introduced to them by their muggleborn friend nearly half a century earlier, to base their vows off of.

He smiled and acted out the scene from the movie, "With this hand, I will lift your sorrows. Your cup will never be empty, for I will be your wine. With this candle, I will light your way into darkness. With this ring, I ask you to be mine."*

She laughed when she saw that the ring slid on her finger was a replica of the one from the movie. She copied him and gave her own vows, "With this hand, I will lift your sorrows. Your cup will never be empty, for I will be your wine. With this candle, I will light your way into darkness. With this ring, I ask you to be mine."*

She stepped forward and he leaned down to kiss her softly, "I love you, Angelina."

"I love you, too, George. I know that Fred would want you to do something drastic, so I am prepared for a face full of cake at your earliest convenience."

George's eyes crinkled and he kissed her temple. "I think he'll forgive me this once for not pulling a prank."


	23. Round 10 Short: The Sign

**A/N  
** **The Houses Competition  
** **Round Ten  
** **House: Hufflepuff  
** **Student: Year 2  
** **Category: Short (500-2000 Words)  
** **Prompt(s): 4. [Object] 'No muggles allowed' sign  
** **Word count: 631 (Per Google Docs)  
** **Beta(s): Aya  
** **Notes: AU Good!Dursleys**

 **The Sign**

Harry and Dudley sat at the desk in Dudley's room with a box of paints and a piece of wood in front of them.

Dudley giggled as he and Harry peered at the sign they had just made for the tree house that his dad had built them at the beginning of summer.

"No muggles allowed," Harry sounded out as he read what he wrote. He smiled at his cousin and bumped his shoulder when he was done. "Should we show Auntie Tunie?"

Dudley nodded vigorously. "Yeah, 'cause Dad has to put it up for us!"

The two boys left Dudley's room.

Harry stopped at the top of the stairs and readjusted his glasses on his nose before grabbing the handrail to walk carefully downstairs to the family room where he heard Aunt Tunie and Uncle Vernon speaking.

"Dudley!" Harry gasped as he tripped on the fourth stair down. Harry's hand-painted sign flew from his hands as he threw his arms up to protect his head when he started to fall.

Dudley turned on his step several below Harry and tried to grab him to keep him from hurting himself.

Dudley managed to latch onto Harry's waist and the handrail at the same time. "Jeez, Harry… are you _trying_ to kill us both?"

"Dudley? Harry?" Petunia stood at the bottom of the stairs hands outstretched as if to catch the pair, white as a ghost. "Are you two boys okay? We can take a trip to the doctor's office…"

Harry finally blinked his green eyes open and took a shuddered breath. "I'm okay, I think. Dudley?" Harry placed a trembling hand on his cousin's arm.

Dudley let out a startled laugh. "Mum, I think we should move." He slowly let go of the handrail and led his smaller cousin down the stairs into his mother's waiting arms. "Harry keeps getting hurt here. My magic hurts in this house."

Harry just looked at the floor where their hard work was in broken pieces at their feet. "The sign broke, Dudley."

"I know, but at least this time, it wasn't _you_."

Harry flinched and hugged his aunt tighter. "I don't _mean_ to get hurt. It just happens!"

"I know, but I think it's the house. The house is angry. It makes my magic hurt. Doesn't it make _your_ magic hurt?"

Harry nodded and released his aunt to cling to his cousin. "It _hurts_ so much. My head aches and I feel so tired all the time. I feel better outside."

Petunia placed a hand on each boy's shoulder and led them into the living room. "Vernon. I think it's time to implement our plan."

Vernon shot to his feet and took in the sight of his boys. "Dudley? Harry? Are you both okay?"

Harry shrugged and Dudley shook his head 'no'.

Vernon sighed then knelt in front of his family to get on eye level with his seven-year-old son and nephew. "I think it's time we moved our home to somewhere else. We'll leave everything here and buy everything new for a new house. That way, if there _is_ a jinx or curse, or just plain bad energy in anything in this house it will all stay here and not follow us."

"But the pictures…" Harry looked over his uncle's head to the fireplace mantle where a picture of the four of them at an amusement park sat.

"I have them all saved into the computer, Harry," Vernon reassured his nephew. "The computer at work so that it's never been tampered with here."

Dudley twisted to look into the hallway where he could still see the broken sign they had worked on together. "Let's do it, Dad. Let's leave."

Vernon nodded and stood. "Let's go on an adventure to find the perfect home."


End file.
